m 


. 

£ 


• 

•§ 
«••     • 


- 


3   C 

0-2 


"Ho 


THE 


ESSAYS,    HUMOR,    AND    POEMS 


OF 


Nathaniel  Ames, 

Father  and  Son, 

OF   DEDHAM,  MASSACHUSETTS, 
from  their 


ALMANACKS 

1726—1775, 

WITH    NOTES    AND    COMMENTS     ' ', 


BY 

SAM.  BRIGGS, 

Vice  President  Western  Reserve  and  Northern  Ohio  Historical  Society,  Corresponding 

Member  Rhode  Island  Historical  Society,  and  Dedham 

(Mass.]  Historical  Society. 


No  one  who  would  penetrate  to  the  core  of  early  American  literature,  and  would 
read  in  it  the  secret  history  of  the  people  in  whose  minds  it  took  root,  and  from  whose 
minds  it  grew,  may  by  any  means  turn  away  in  lofty  literary  scorn  from  the  Almanack — 
most  despised,  most  prolific,  most  indispensable  of  books,  which  every  man  uses,  and 
no  man  praises  ;  the  very  quack,  clown,  pack-horse,  and  Pariah  of  modern  literature  ; 
the  supreme  and  only  literary  necessity  even  in  households  where  the  Bible  and  the 
newspaper  are  still  undesired  or  unattainable  luxuries. — MOSES  COIT  TYLER. 


CLEVELAND,  OHIO, 
1891. 


COPYRIGHT 

1891 

BY 

SAM.   BRIGGS. 


PRINTED  FOR  THE   SUBSCRIBERS 

BY 

SHORT  &  FORMAN, 
CLEVELAND,  O. 


TO 

THE  SUBSCRIBERS 

WHOSE   PROMPT  AND   GENEROUS   RESPONSE 

HAS   MADE 
THE  PUBLICATION   OF   THIS   BOOK 

A 

POSSIBILITY 

THIS  VOLUME  IS  GRATEFULLY 
DEDICATED. 


974119 


An  Ajtronomnal  Diary  < 

A  LMANACK 

For  the  Tear  of  Our  Lord  CHRIS! 
1726". 

And  from  the  Creation  of  the  WorldJ 

according  to  the  beft  of  Prophanc  Hcftory,  5^75.: 
But  by  fhe  Account  of  the  Holy  Scripture,  f  688: 

It  being  the  Second  after  Bi/extil*  or  Leap.  Year, 
Amfthe  Twdfth  Year  of  the  Reign  of  OurMoft 
Gracious  Sovereign  Lord  KING  GEORGE 

Wherein  is  Conrain'd  the  Lunations,  Eclipfes  of 
the  Luminaries,  the  Planets  Motions  &  Mutual 
4fpc8r,  the  Suns  Rifing  and  Setting,  Time  of 
Higl)  Water,  Court  tt  Spring  Tide*,  judgment  of  the 
Wtatier.  Together  \vjth  many  other  Thi»gs 
neccffary  far  fuch  a  Work. 

d  Tor  the,  Meridian  of  BoHon,  N.England, 
Latitude,  is  42  Jtg>   15  min 


NATHANIEL    A  M.E  S, 

.Student  io  Pfyjick  and  Aflronomj. 


$  0  W  Seventeen  hundrtdFg  Twenty  Six  tty  Sunfi 
His  annual  courfe  ffrtce  CHKJST  ^'i  Birtb  haib  run. 
Strange  Revolutions  in  thif  time  have  been, 
la  divert  Lands,  Kingdomttnd  Countries  fetn, 
&>nx  Yean  were  happy,  feme  with  Woes  perplex  t 
•And  Q  O  D  knows  nfo  fall  Uve  -unto  the 


£  0  ST  0  AT :  Printed  and  Sold  by  B,  Own,  and 
Sold  aifo  ac  the  BookfeUars  Shops,    1746 


The  title  page  of  the  first  Almanack  of  Dr.  Ames. 


Kind  Reader, 


*'fl'  * 
hcl) 


Almanack://0  p?airi  that  it 

Explanation,  except   tl?e  -place   of  Saturn  and  Jupiter, 
it  over  the  loft'  Column,  at  the  top  -of  every  Page,,  for  the 
Sthti6tbtand  -i^th  Days  of  every  Monti)  in  this  fear. 


The  Names  and  .Characters  of  chc  planets,  Signs, 
and  Nodes  arc  thcfc, 


e     S 
cts,  "2 


Saturn  fj  ,  Jupiter  #,  Mars  $  Sol  or  Sun  Q, 
Venus  $,  Mercury  §,  Luna  or  the  Moon  > 


e 


C  Acies  Y.Taurus  ^5  Gemini  lt,Canccr  ^|p,Leof^t 
<  V«rgo  W  Libra  ^.Scorpio  m-Sagiurius  >^,Ca^ 
I  prico-n  VS,  Aquarius  ZZ,  Pifces  X- 


Tbc  OJdAfpw:^s  are  Five  inNumber,as  the  Conjunction 
Scxtile  i-  Quarti }e  D,Tcinc  A,  Oppodtion  g. 


The  New  Afpefts  arc  Eight  in  Number,  viz. 


Semifcxcile      SS        Tridecllc         Td 
Decile  <3cc      SefiquadrAte 

Quincilc          Q        BiquLile 


Th 

Nodes 


ic     J    The  Dragons   Head    Q,    Dragons  Tail 
es.    (      Pfcrc  of   Fortune  Q) 


The  Vulgar  Notes  of  tfrii  Year  arc, 

Golden  Number —  »7?5  Epaft- ~. — — 7 

Cycle  of  the  Sun <273  c  Dominical  Letter.— — %3 


Notet  The  Glorious  Planet  Ve*w  is  Occidental  or 
Evening  Scar,  t\\\  rhe  aj  of  March,  from  thence 
Oriendal  or  Morning  Star,  to  the  Years  End. 


The  second  page  of  Dr.  Ames'  first  Almanack, 
1726. 


Of  the  E  C  L  I  P  S  E  S  this  Year, 
1726. 

THERE  will  happen  this  Year  Four  Eclipfcs  of  the 
Luminaries.      Two  of  the  Sun,  and   Two  of  the 
Moon. 

I.  The  Firft  will  be  an  Eclipfc  of  the  Sun,  March  11 
about  £  in  the  Morning  ;  but   by  Reafon  of  the   Moons 
South  Latitude  it  will  be  Invifible  to  us. 

II.  The  Second  will  be  of  the  Moon,  cri  the,  $tfy  of  Jtp'd, " 
about  8  in  the  Morning,  and  for  chat  Rcafon.  Irwifible. 

Ill  The  Third  will  be  a  Great  Eclipfe-  of  che  Sun,  and 
Vifible  to  us  if  the  Air  be  clear;  it  happens  on  Wedncfday 
the  lOftb  of  Stf timber.  The  Calculation  is  as  follows. 

The  Beginning  will  be  at-« 36  min.  p.  10  Morn. 

The  Middle  at  — • • .'Noon. 

The  End — 1 — 24.min,-p«  i.Aftern. 

The  Whole  Duration  • a   Hours   48    min. 

The  Digits  Eclipfcd  are  about 10 

IV.  The  Fourth  and  Laft  is  of  the  'Moon.the  Beginning 
will  be  on  the  29*6  of  September,  and  about  Six  Digits  of 
the  Lower  or  South  half  of  the  .M6on  will  pafs  thro*  the 
Earths  Shadow,  it  will  be  Vifible  to  us  if  the  Weather 
permit,  which  according  to  Calculation  will  be  as  follows. 

The  Beginning  29  Day 34  min.  paft  10' /Night 

The    Middle  .  39  Day 3.9   mftt.ptft  xi';  Night 

The  End  30  Day   — . 4    min.   putt    i   Mom. 

The  whole  Duration  . —  *..  a  Hours  30  min. 

This  Eclipfe  of  the  Moon  happens;&;  near 
the  Great  Benevolent  Jufitcr,  the  Effeds  'tis 
will ;  not  be  ill/ 


The  seventh  page  of  Dr.  Ames'  first  Almanack,, 
1726. 


TO    THE    READER. 
Courteous  Reader, 

JJtve  hire  adventured  to  pftfcntyou  with   an  Alma 
nack/*^  the    EnfalngTear.    It   Vting  my  fir  ft  made 
Publick  by  the  Prefs  ;    (fould  it  find  ^cctptance,  1  hoot 
my  End  And  fpmll  receive  Jt$cjtflt.Encw*£tip(Jit  lo  Vn. 
dertafojomwhat  more  for  your  bentflt*     Thus  Reader     far 
ydurjjfibe  /  have  expoftd  my  f  elf  to   the  dangerous  &  Jbtirp 
Teeth  of  tnvittis  Dtirtcion,  w^ich.  is  a  great  H***ard  :Jpe- 
fo  tku  ywHjh'd  dgt,  amtng  fo  mw}  ffii  &  cttriottt 
nto  fared?  can  appr'ov&df+any  thing,  tbo'  -never  fo 
Cowpoftd.     'There  but  hen  no  pains,  nor  care, 
tcftfor  ihefe  fyhiil*liwTf  Atfrte  froto  Error  t  as 
yet  if  ^tny  fault  commit  fed  ly  my  Pen  or  Prejs  fajs 
ed^  lLxcnfe  jt  5  in  /o  doing  yw  -will  not  only  do 
AJZmdnefj,  but  *ljo  oblige  k\w,  t\b^  is  a  friend  to 
that  fre  MMhemtttctlly  inclirtfdt  .end  a  red  Lwtr  of 

of  Afhwwmj)  N.  Anit  s« 

Oftob.  J2th. 


n&  LcArn  lut  dun't  ali  falu 
$lnce  they  can  only  fftd&c  that  can  Cvrreft  ; 
To  whom  my  Worls  appeal,  and  if  I  find,     - 
Son/  of  4rt  to  favour  tbtm  indw  d  ; 
their  Propitious  /miles,  u  fall  ft$cf, 
the  &o&ns  of  Enemies, 


R 


TWi«  io  a  Century  (  Old  Indian*  Iky.) 
Out  Land  abounds  with  Bears  &  Btafts  of  Prey  ; 
Wfcetcoffonie  do  embrace  ProudNeptunes  Waves 
And  With  ttie  Scaly  Tttbe  fwiai  to  thtn 
Others  Rctrea.t  tcrvsraidsthrFiigid  £ant, 
And  dwell  in  Detcrt  yet  to  us  unknown  ; 
They  11  cotne,no  inorfi  from  whence  they  jdo  Re 
UauJ,  «  Jobtiee  of  Years  Expire, 

I  Dele  Sup.  C.  JSoflcm,  tie  FviLTucfty  in 


The  eighth  page  of  Dr.  Ames'  first  Almanack, 
1726. 


APOLOGY. 


VERYTHING  has  a  beginning,  and  books  afe>'rvo'.ekc>»ption 
to  the  rule.     A  book  without  a  preface  would  eertaftilv  VH 

%'   '  "r    I,,        -  »• 

unique,  for  some  excuse  must  always  be  found'  for  public 
calamities;  hence  I,  in  introducing  my  author  anew  to  the  public, 
after  a  lapse  of  so  many  years,  essay  this  apology  for  my  temerity, 
and  relate  how  I  became  so  interested  in  what  is  generally  and 
ignorantly  classed  as  the  most  insignificant  of  works.  My  first 
intimacy  with  the  almanack  was  at  a  very  tender  age — before  my 
advent  into  nankeen  trousers — and  the  first  copy  that  ever 
attracted  my  attention  was  one  of  a  number  that  hung  suspended 
from  a  brass  knob,  at  the  corner  of  a  mantel  which  surmounted 
the  cavernous  kitchen  fireplace  in  the  chateau  where  my 
grandfather  resided. 

It  was  about  dusk,  I  was  alone — or  almost  so — two  self-satisfied 
looking  silhouettes  that  beamed  graciously  from  their  mournful 
frames  above  the  mantel  were  the  only  company  present,  and  the 
brass  andirons  which  I  had  regarded  complacently  by  the  light 
of  the  flickering  fire,  seemed  to  express  sympathy  for  the  only 
child  in  the  house. 

As  I  have  said,  the  suspended  bunch  of  almanacks  attracted 
my  attention.  The  huge  rooster  on  the  outer  cover,  surrounded 
by  the  legend  "HUTCHINS'  FARMERS  ALMANACK,  FOR  THE  YEAR 
OF  OUR  LORD  1846,"  seemed  to  say  "come,  and  enjoy  the  contents 
hereof,"  and  I  accepted  the  invitation.  First,  I  essayed  to  reach 


10  APOLOGY. 

the  library  with  the  turkey  wing — no  success;  next,  the  brass 
mounted  tongs  refused  to  gather  the  treasure;  and  finally,  an 
assault  upon  the  work  was  inevitable.  I  pushed  a  very  shaky 
list-bottomed  rocking  chair  of  perpendicular  architecture,  from 
the  other  side  of  the  room  to  the  corner  of  the  fireplace,  mounted 
this  very  wiggly  ladder,  and  tremblingly  reached  for  the  prize. 
The  rooster  appeared  to  ope  his  mouth  to  denounce  the  infidelity 
of  a  youthful  Peter;  the  occupants  of  the  silhouette  frames 
appeared  to  frown,  the  fire  seemed  desirous  of  going  out ;  I 
grabbed  <the:  pamphlets,  the  list-bottom  subsided,  in  fact  gave 
(me)  ,aw,ay.  .Onfe-  leg  went  through,  my  balance  was  missing,  the 
airiian&ekG*anel  brass  button  came  also;  so  did  a  crash,  a  scream, 
and  my  grandfather's  eldest  daughter,  who  elucidated  the  enor 
mity  of  my  crime  by  sundry  resonant  spanks,  on  that  portion  of 
my  anatomy  as  yet  guiltless  of  nankeen. 

To  continue  my  tale — I  never  took  much  interest  in  almanacks 
from  that  day,  until  about  fifteen  years  since,  when  I  made  a  visit 
to  a  sequestered  retreat  in  Connecticut,  of  absolute  Arcadian 
simplicity,1  nine  miles  from  civilization,  where  a  locomotive 
whistle  was  never  heard,  where  a  steamboat  was  never  known  to 
stop,  where  people  have  lived  and  died  happily,  as  stones  in  the 
graveyard  have  attested  for  more  than  a  century ;  where  Sunday 
commences  Saturday  night,  where  attending  meeting  is  an  all 
day  job,  where  a  funeral  is  a  solemnity,  where  the  mail  comes 
but  twice  a  week,  and  where  at  other  times  the  intelligence  is 
conveyed  by  those  who  gathered  at  "  'Squire  Arnold's  'tween 
services  last  Sabbath." 

On  the  occasion  of  this  never-to-be-forgotten  visit,  a  dolorous 

1  Only  the  people  wore   more  clothes.     I  never  rightly  appreciated 

what  "  Arcadian  simplicity  "  was,  until  my  friend,  John  W ,  then  U.  S. 

Consul  at  M explained  to  an  inquiring  caller  in  my  presence  that  the 

natives  of  a  certain  province  in  North  Africa  were  arrayed  with  "Arcadian 
simplicity."  More  details  being  required,  John  explained  that  "they  only 
wore  a  little  cotton  in  their  ears." 


APOLOGY.  1 1 

succession  of  wet  days,  a  consequent  dearth  of  amusement, 
engendered  a  desire  for  self-destruction,  and  I  went  up  into  the 
attic  or  garret  of  this  farmhouse  to  procure  the  necessary  tools. 
I  had  no  sooner  bumped  my  head  against  the  rafters  when  my 
mind  changed,  and  I  seated  myself  like  Mr.  C.  Marius  among  the 
ruins  of  Carthage,  and  contemplated  my  surroundings.  There 
were  bunches  of  dried  herbs,  antiquated  farm  tools,  popcorn, 
seed  corn,  buckwheat,  wool,  old  quilts,  spinning  wheels,  close 
stools,  (auglice,  invalids  chairs),  flax  hetchels,  scythes,  tobacco 
plants,  hen  feathers,  (and  other  gallinaceous  jetsam,)  wasps'  nests 
with  some  wasps,  cobwebs,  old  boots  and  other  considered  trifles 
of  rustic  life  that  might  corne  handy  some  day.  While  mentally 
taking  this  inventory  my  eyes  rested  on  a  stack  of  papers,  books 
and  pamphlets  in  various  stages  of  decay,  giving  forth  a  peculiar 
aromatic  incense,  reminding  one  somewhat  of  a  certain  insect,1 
than  which,  according  to  a  discriminating  Frenchman,  the  odor 
of  the  remark  made  by  Cambronne  at  Waterloo,  was  infinitely 
more  preferable. 

Reading  matter  on  a  farm  of  the  character  of  this  abiding 
place  is  always  a  scarce  article,  and  at  this  juncture  this  mine  of 
odoriferous  scraps  was  gladly  welcomed.  The  world  seemed 
young  again,  dull  care  had  vanished,  and  I  lost  myself  in  the 
wilderness  of  religious  pamphlets,  ancient  Congressional  Records, 
early  school  books,  weekly  newspapers,  the  " Russel  Colvin 
miracle"  the  "I^ast  dying  speeches  of  Gibbs  and  Wansley,  the 
Pirates," — the  latter  appropriately  illustrated  with  two  occupied 
coffins, — and  other  miscellany,  among  which  was  sprinkled  many 
copies  of  ancient  almanacks,  principally  the  productions  of 
Nathan  Daboll,  the  time-honored  Connecticut  mathematician. 

The  almanacks  interested  me  the  most,  and  I  carried  off  all  I 
could  find.  Since  this  occasion  I  have  gathered  them  in  from 
almost  every  part  of  the  world.  Early  in  this  craze,  a  quantity 

1  Cimex  lectularius,  of  the  order  Hemiptera,  which  has  no  wings  at  all. 


12  APOIvOGY. 

of  the  Ames  publications  came  into  my  hands,  with  the  contents 
of  which  I  occasionally  regaled  my  friends  who  appreciated  the 
quaintness  of  the  essays  and  other  contents.  Then  I  found  later 
that  Professor  Moses  Coit  Tyler  had  devoted  a  portion  of  his 
History  of  American  Literature  to  the  endorsement  of  the  merit 
of  Nathaniel  Ames  as  an  author,  and  subsequent  visits  and 
correspondence  with  the  historical  societies  at  Providence,  R.  I., 
and  Dedham,  Mass.,  convinced  me  that  the  Ames  Almanacks,  if 
re-published,  would  interest  more  than  the  antiquarian  ;  and 
these  facts  collectively  constitute  my  apology  for  the  appear 
ance  of  this  work. 

In  this  connection  I  desire  to  express  my  thanks  to  the  officers 
and  members  of  the  Rhode  Island  and  Dedham  Historical 
Societies,  for  the  loan  of  books  and  documents  which  have  been 
of  material  aid  in  the  perfection  of  this  work.  Particularly  am 
I  under  obligations  to  the  Hon.  Amos  Perry,  the  secretary  and 
librarian  of  the  former,  and  Messrs.  Don  Gleason  Hill,  H.  O. 
Hildreth,  M.  Gardner  Boyd,  Krastus  Worthington  and  John  H. 
Burdakin,  of  the  latter,  for  many  kindly  courtesies  extended. 
Mr.  John  Ward  Dean,  the  librarian  of  the  New  England  Historic 
Genealogical  Society,  has  also  served  me  by  the  loan  of  almanacks 
from  their  collection,  for  which,  I  trust  I  am  duly  grateful. 

For  photographic  views,  original  documents,  copies  of  papers, 
and  sketches  for  purposes  of  illustration,  I  am  also  indebted  to 
Miss  Sarah  B.  Baker,  Miss  Annie  R.  Fisher,  and  Mr.  John  F. 
Guild,  of  Dedham,  whose  aid  in  this  direction  is  most  thoroughly 
appreciated. 

And  lastly,  I  desire  to  express  my  gratification  to  Professor 
Moses  Coit  Tyler,  for  the  opportunity  afforded  me  of  confirming 
my  own  opinion  and  that  of  my  associates,  concerning  the 
excellence  of  the  Ames  Almanack  Essays,  etc.,  by  the  perusal  of 
his  History  of  American  Literature,  and  from  which  I  shall 
largely  quote  in  this  volume. 


OF  ALMANACKS  IN  GENERAL. 


AN  almanack  !  There  is  very  little,  if  any,  inspiration  in  either 
the  word  or  the  book  itself  when  viewed  through  modern 
spectacles.  In  the  springtime  it  makes  its  presence  felt  by  being 
lodged  under  the  door  mat,  pushed  into  the  mail  receiver,  or,  by 
being  tied  up  with  the  package  of  spring  medicine  purchased 
by  pater  Jamilias  on  his  way  home  Saturday  evening,  is  thus 
surreptitiously  introduced  in  the  home  circle. 

In  these  degenerate  days  it  has  to  be  forced  into  an  existence, 
for  but  fe.  w  ask  for  it,  and  a  lesser  number  care  for  it.  Its  columns 
teem  with  the  virtues  of  pills,  potions  and  plasters,  interspersed 
with  views  of  our  internal  economy  calculated  to  make  the  well 
man  ill,  and  the  invalid  to  relax  his  grasp  on  the  thread  of  life. 

"But  full  is  fickle  Fortune's  smile 

of  guile ; 

For  Dan  brought  home  one  day,  alack ! 
A  patent  medicine  almanack, 
And  full  of  long  and  learned  theses 
Upon  the  symptoms  of  diseases ; 

Dan  read  the  symptoms,  great  and  small — 

And  HAD  THEM  ALL." 

How  are  the  mighty  fallen !  It  was  not  always  thus.  Far 
away  in  the  dim  vista  of  the  past  this  humble  vehicle  of  general 
knowledge  was  an  honored  guest  at  every  fireside ;  the  chimney 
corner  was  its  throne,  and  its  well-thumbed  leaves  gave  evidence 
of  the  estimation  in  which  it  was  held.  Interleaved,  it  became  a 


14  ALMANACKS  IN 

register  of  domestic  occurrences  and  neighborhood  happenings. 
Its  predictions  and  weather  wisdom  were  reverenced  next  to  the 
sacred  writings,  and  quite  often  was  the  only  literature  to  be 
found  in  many  homes  where  its  annual  visits  were  anxiously 
awaited.  However,  it  is  not  the  purpose  of  this  chapter  to 
lament  the  fate  of  the  almanack,  which  has  but  attained  the 
destiny  of  all  created  things,  but  it  is  intended  merely  to  place 
this  nowadays  inconsidered  trifle  in  its  proper  historical  niche, 
and  briefly  sketch  its  inception,  its  life,  and  its  decline  as  a 
prominent  feature  of  literature. 

Almanacks  have  existed  in  some  form  from  time  immemorial, 
and  almanack  makers  have  always  had  a  reputation  entitling 
them  to  great  respect  and  reverence  from  a  very  early  day.  In 
manuscript  form  they  were  known  centuries  before  the  invention 
of  printing,  and  upon  the  advent  of  that  invention  they  were 
among  the  first  publications  issued  to  the  world  from  that  very 
convenient  machine. 

I  have  always  had  the  notion  that  the  "miraculous  pillar  of 
fire"  which  preceded  the  expedition  of  the  Israelites  toward  the 
"promised  land,"  was  simply  the  comet  of  that  season,  possibly 
mentioned  by  the  court  astrologer  of  the  previous  year,  as  being 
of  disastrous  portent,  which  disaster  was  speedily  taken  advantage 
of  by  Moses,  who  immediately  started  his  expedition. 

Those  shepherds  of  the  ancient  day  who  looked  after  the 
stray  lambs  in  the  evening,  doubtless  were  largely  responsible 
for  early  astronomical  lore,  their  opportunities  for  observations 
on  the  movements  of  the  stars  being  largely  due  to  their  very 
convenient  occupation,  and  a  lack  of  other  matters  to  distract 
their  attention.  They  probably  reported  the  "prodigies"  which 
they  noted,  to  the  astrologers  who  compared  notes,  checked  up 
the  alleged  causes  and  probable  effects,  and  finally  succeeded  in 
inaugurating  a  system  of  predictions  which  enhanced  the  reputa 
tion  of  the  soothsayers  generally,  bringing  astrology  to  the  front 


ALMANACKS  IN  GENERAL.  15 

as  a  science.  Nearly  all  the  earlier  nations  were  intimate  with 
the  study  of  the  stars.  The  Chaldees  were  familiar  with  astrology, 
the  Jews  practiced  it  during  the  Captivity  at  odd  hours,  when 
their  attention  was  not  taken  up  with  the  construction  of  the 
Pyramids  and  such  other  little  Egyptian  necessities. 

Among  the  Hindus  it  was  known,  and  the  tribes  of  Arabia 
were  adept  in  the  art  of  forecasting  the  future  by  the  stars.  The 
Druids  also  possessed  some  knowledge  of  astronomy,  and  an 
ancient  poem  in  the  primitive  Irish  (Erse)  tongue  bears  evidence 
that  that  nation  had  some  astronomical  knowledge  at  an  early 
day. 

The  Arabians,  however,  appear  to  have  been  the  most 
advanced  students  of  the  sciences  of  astronomy  and  astrology, 
and  this  nation  being  at  an  early  period  (prior  to  their  expulsion 
from  Spain)  the  conservators  of  art  and  literature,  were  the  first 
who  introduced  it  into  Europe,  possibly  about  the  same  period 
with  alcohol,  (also  of  Arabic  origin)  that  prominent  factor  in  the 
elevation  of  the  race. 

The  history  of  written  almanacks  has  not  been  traced  farther 
back  than  the  second  century  of  the  Christian  era,  at  which 
period  it  is  supposed  that  they  were  constructed  by  the  Greeks 
of  Alexandria. 

Lalande,  an  investigator  of  early  astronomical  works,  did  not 
find  any  express  mention  of  almanacks  anterior  to  those  pub 
lished  by  Solomon  Jarchus,  A.  D.  1150. 

The  earliest  almanacks  known  to  exist  are  in  MS.  of  the 
twelfth  century,  and  examples  are  to  be  found  in  the  libraries  of 
the  British  Museum,  Cambridge  and  Oxford  Universities. 

In  the  Savilian  library  at  Oxford  is  a  manuscript  copy  of  the 
almanack  published  about  the  year  1300  by  Petrus  de  Dacia. 

Contemporary  with  this  author  are  recorded  the  almanack 
productions  of  the  Rev.  Roger  Bacon,  of  the  Church  militant, 


i6 


ALMANACKS    IN   GENERAL. 


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Reduced  fac-simile  of  a  page  from  the  Regio-Montanus  Almanack  printed 
at  Ulm  in  1478,  by  John  Zainer. 

At  Oxford,  formerly  the  seat  of  British  science,  were  issued 
the  earlier  standard  almanacks.  Here  were  published  the  pro 
ductions  of  John  Somers,  1380;  Nicolas  de  Lynne,  1386,  and 
many  others. 


ALMANACKS  IN  GENERAL.  17 

The  first  printed  almanack  bears  imprint  1457. 

Regio-Montanus  appears  to  have  been  the  first  in  Europe  who 
reduced  the  almanack  to  its  present  form  and  method,  gave  the 
characters  of  each  year  and  month,  foretold  the  eclipses  and 
other  phases,  calculated  the  motions  of  the  planets,  etc.  He 
printed  an  almanack  in  Nuremburg  in  1472,  which  embraced 
three  Metonic  Cycles,  or  the  fifty-seven  (57)  years,  1475-1531, 
inclusive. 

The  earliest  almanack  known  to  have  been  printed  in  England 
was  "  The  Sheapheard's  Kalendar"  translated  from  the  French 
and  printed  by  Richard  Pynson,  1497,  copies  of  which  have  been 
sold  as  high  as  $75  within  the  past  five  years. 

From  this  period  down  to  the  golden  age  of  the  almanack,— 
which  was  attained  during  the  Commonwealth,  and  the  subse 
quent  reigns  of  Charles  II,  James  and  William, — these  publica 
tions  were  more  generally  circulated,  owing  to  the  increase  of 
printing  presses,  and  the  popularity  of  judicial  astrology.  All 
the  almanacks  of  this  period  are  of  the  same  general  tendency, 
but  with  the  advance  of  education  their  reputation  waned  and 
now  they  barely  have  an  existence  in  England — the  former 
paradise  of  the  astrological  almanack — only  being  represented 
now  by  the  " Francis  Moore"  or  "Old  Moore's  Almanack,"  the 
lineal  descendant  of  the  "  Vox  Stellarum"  originated  by  that 
gentleman  who  was  an  astrologer,  physician,  and  schoolmaster 
in  England  about  1680,  and  for  which  Henry  Andrews,  a  cele 
brated  mathematician,  made  the  astronomical  calculations  for  a 
period  of  forty-three  years  next  preceding  his  decease  in  1820. 

At  the  present  day,  the  only  almanack  of  practical  utility 
published  in  Europe  is  the  "Almanack  de  Got  ha"  founded  in 
1764,  and  is  a  condensed  annual  compend  of  the  history  and 
statistics  of  every  civilized  nation  on  earth. 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  ALMANACK  IN  AMERICA. 


/CAMBRIDGE,  in  Massachusetts,  was  the  cradle  of  the 
Almanack  in  America.  The  first  printing  press  estab 
lished  in  the  British  Colonies  was  there  located  and  placed 
under  the  supervision  of  Harvard  College,  and  the  first  book 
issued  from  the  College  press  was  an  Almanack  for  the  year 
1639  ;  and  thereafter,  and  until  near  the  close  of  the  seventeenth 
century  an  almanack  was  annually  issued  from  this  press. 

The  printing  press  at  Cambridge  was  first  under  the  manage 
ment  of  Stephen  Daye,  who  was  evidently  brought  from  London 
for  the  purpose,  but  in  a  few  years  he  relinquished  the  business, 
and  Samuel  Green  was  appointed  by  the  Corporation  of  Harvard 
College  as  "  College  printer,"  and  the  press  remained  in  his  con 
trol  for  many  years.  Green  wras  the  progenitor  of  a  generation 
of  printers,  and  either  he,  or  his  immediate  descendants  estab 
lished  the  first  presses  in  nearly  all  of  the  original  thirteen 
colonies. 

The  first  almanack  printed  in  America  was  for  the  year  1639, 
and  compiled  by  WILUAM  PIERCB,  Mariner •,  "  one  of  the  most 
active  shipmasters  in  the  days  of  the  Pilgrims."  It  was  entitled 
"  An  Almanack  for  New  England  for  the  year  1639."  Following 
this  publication,  each  year  brought  forth  its  Almanack  through 
the  medium  of  the  Cambridge  press,  many  celebrities,  divines, 
and  graduates  of  Harvard,  being  authors  of  their  astronomical 
calculations  and  other  contents.  Among  these  Danforth,  Oakes, 


THE  ALMANACK  IN  AMERICA.  19 

Brigden,  Cheever,  Chauncey,  Dudley,  Foster,  and  even  those 
prolific  writers,  the  Mathers,  ceased  on  occasion,  from  their 
combats  with  Satan,  to  rejoice  the  world  with  an  Ephcmeris. 
About  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century,  with  the  establish 
ment  of  the  printing  press  at  various  places  in  the  colonies,  the 
publication  of  the  Almanack  was  not  restricted  to  any  particular 
locality,  and  following  close  upon  Cambridge,  Boston  became 
early  celebrated  for  the  number  and  variety  of  these  publications, 
and  the  intellectual  attainments  of  their  authors. 

The  first  humorous  almanack  in  the  Colonies  was  compiled 
by  John  Tully,  of  Saybrook,  Conn.,  who  issued  annually  1687- 
1702,  and  introduced  into  his  publication  entertaining  features 
of  varied  interest  which  made  his  almanack  quite  popular.1 

Persons  who  advert  to  Almanacks,  especially  those  of 
American  origin,  and  who  are  disposed  to  allow  any  merit  to 
this  class  of  literary  work,  are  very  prone  to  dismiss  the  subject 
with  very  few  words,  and  close  their  remarks  in  fulsome  praise 
of  "  Poor  Richard1  s  Almanack,"2  its  gifted  and  patriotic  compiler, 
good  Benjamin  Franklin,  and  descant  upon  the  beneficent  influ 
ence  exerted  by  this  publication  upon  the  manners  of  the  age 
and  community,  when,  and  in  which  it  was  circulated.  Many 
have  labored  under  what  is  claimed  to  be  an  erroneous  impres 
sion,  concerning  the  authorship  of  the  matter  contained  in  this 
(Franklin's)  publication,  and  without  pretending  to  prove  or 
disprove  the  assertion  that  the  contents  of  "Poor  Richard" 
emanated  from  the  pen  of  Benjamin  Franklin,  I  will  merely  say 

1  A  Rev.    Thomas   Robie  of  Salem,   a   Harvard   graduate,   was   once 
severely  criticized  by  a  bilious  critic,  who  said,  "  that  his  sermons  were 
only  heathenish  discourses, — no   better  Christianity   than   there   was   in 
Tully."     Tully,  the  Almanack  man,  had  deceased  before  this  harsh  censor 
had  uttered  this  calumny,  and  hence  was  undisturbed  by  these  unfeeling 
remarks. 

2  Published  1733-1758  under  the  nom  de  plume  of  Richard  Saunders, 
assumed  by  Franklin. 


20  THE   ALMANACK   IN   AMERICA. 

that  the  long  experience  of  Benjamin  as  a  printer  and  newspaper 
man,  would  better  enable  him  to  collate  and  publish  what  would 
please  the  people,  than  most  any  one  that  might  be  mentioned 
among  his  contemporaries. 

Professor  Moses  Coit  Tyler  says,  "  One  of  the  numerous 
myths  still  prevailing  in  the  world  with  reference  to  Benjamin 
Franklin,  describes  him  as  the  first  founder  of  an  almanac  blend 
ing  those  qualities  of  shrewd  instruction  and  keen  mother-wit, 
that  are  to  be  seen  in  his  famous  series ;  a  French  encyclopedist, 
for  example,  declaring  that  Franklin  '  put  forth  the  first  popular 
almanack  which  spoke  the  language  of  reason/  but  Franklin 
borrowed  much  of  the  wisdom  and  wit  which  he  introduced  into 
his  almanacks  from  Bacon,  Rabelais,  Rochefoucauld,  Steele, 
Swift,  DeFoe,  and  others ;  but  even  the  idea  of  introducing  into 
an  almanac  wit  and  wisdom,  whether  original  or  borrowed,  had 
been  thought  of  and  put  into  practice  before  Franklin's  "  Poor 
Richard"  was  born.  In  1728,  five  years  before  that  event, 
Franklin's  brother  James,  sent  forth  the  first  number  of  "  The 
Rhode  Island  Almanac ;"  and  in  its  pages,  year  by  year,  one 
may  find  no  little  of  that  sagacity,  humor,  and  knack  of  phrase, 
that  did  so  much  for  the  fortunes  of  his  own  runaway  apprentice. 
But  even  three  years  before  James  Franklin's  almanac  appeared, 
Nathaniel  Ames,  a  physician  and  inn-keeper  of  Dedham,  Massa 
chusetts,  a  man  of  original,  vigorous  and  pungent  genius,  began 
the  publication  of  his  "Astronomical  Diary  and  Almanack;" 
which  he  continued  to  publish  till  his  death  in  1764;  which 
under  his  management  acquired  an  enormous  popularity  through 
out  New  England ; l  and  which  from  the  first,  contained  in  high 
perfection  every  type  of  excellence  afterward  illustrated  in  the 
almanac  of  Benjamin  Franklin.  Indeed,  Ames's  Almanac  was 
in  most  respects,  better  than  Franklin's,  and  wras  probably,  the 

:It  had  reached  during  the  period  1726-1764  an  annual  circulation  of 
sixty  thousand  copies. 


THE  ALMANACK  IN  AMERICA.  21 

most  pleasing  representative  we  have  of  a  form  of  literature 
that  furnished  so  much  entertainment  to  our  ancestors,  and  that 
preserves  for  us  so  many  characteristic  tints  of  their  life  and 
thought. 

"  Nathaniel  Ames  made  his  Almanack  a  sort  of  annual  cyclo 
pedia  of  information  and  amusement,  a  vehicle  for  the  conveyance 
to  the  public  of  all  sorts  of  knowledge  and  nonsense,  in  prose 
and  verse,  from  literature,  history,  and  his  own  mind;  all 
presented  with  brevity,  variety  and  infallible  tact.  He  had  the 
instinct  of  a  journalist;  and  under  a  guise  that  was  half  frolic 
some,  the  sincerity  and  benignant  passion  of  a  public  educator. 
He  carried  into  the  furthest  wildernesses  of  New  England  some 
of  the  best  English  literature,  pronouncing  there,  perhaps  for  the 
first  time,  the  names  of  Addison,  Thomson,  Pope,  Dryden, 
Butler,  Milton  ;  and  repeating  there  choice  fragments  of  what 
they  had  written.  Thus  eight  years  before  Benjamin  Franklin 
had  started  his  almanac,  Nathaniel  Ames  was  publishing  one 
that  had  all  its  best  qualities,  fact  and  frolic ;  the  wisdom  of  the 
preacher  without  his  solemnity,  terse  sayings,  shrewdness,  wit, 
homely  wisdom,  all  sparkling  in  piquant  phrase. 

"  As  the  public  expected  the  almanac-maker  to  be  a  prophet, 
Nathaniel  Ames  gratified  the  public,  and  he  freely  predicted 
future  events,  but  always  with  a  merry  twinkle  in  his  eye,  and 
always  ready  to  laugh  the  loudest  at  his  own  failure  to  predict 
them  aright.  He  mixes,  in  delightful  juxtaposition,  absurd 
prognostications,  curt  jests,  and  aphorisms  of  profound  wisdom, 
the  whole  forming  a  miscellany  even  now  extremely  readable, 
and  sure,  at  that  time,  to  raise  shouts  of  laughter  around 
thousands  of  fire-places  where  food  for  laughter  was  much 
needed." 

I  have  drawn  thus  liberally  upon  the  writings  of  Dr.  Ames's 
most  extensive  commentator,  to  make  plain  the  estimation  in 
which  these  humble  almanacks  are  held  by  others,  and  now,  in 


22 


THK  ALMANACK  IN  AMERICA. 


conclusion :  if  Coleridge  "  could  write  a  treatise  in  praise  of 
Rabelais'  work  which  would  make  the  church  stare  and  the 
conventicle  groan,"  I  feel  quite  assured  that  our  new  world 
philosopher  and  humorist,  while  not  possessing  such  shocking 
merits,  will  not  be  received  with  disfavor  by  those  who  may 
now  know  him  for  the  first  time. 


THE  AMES  FAMILY,  AND  THE  TOWN  OF  DEDHAM. 


were  three  men  of  the  name  of  NATHANIEL  AMES; 
grandfather,  father  and  son.  They  were  descended  from 
Richard  Ames  of  Bruton-Somerset,  England,  whose  son  William 
Ames  was  born  at  Bruton,  6  Oct.,  1605,  and  who  settled  at 
Braintree,  Mass.,  as  early  as  1640,  where  his  eldest  son  John 
was  born  May  24,  1647.  He  (John)  removed  to  West  Bridge- 
water  about  1672.  Theyzr^  Nathaniel  was  the  second  son  of 
John,  and  was  born  Oct.  9,  1677.  He  was  known  as  CAPT. 
NATHANIEL  AMES,  and  was  reputed  as  learned  in  astronomy 
and  mathematics.  He  died  at  Bridgewater,  Mass.,  in  1736,  aged 
59  years. 

The  second  NATHANIEL  AMES,  son  of  CAPT.  NATHANIEL 
AMES,  was  born  at  Bridgewater  July  22,  1708;  moved  from 
thence  to  Dedham  in  1732,  and  was  married  Sept.  14,  1735  to 
Mary,  daughter  of  Capt.  Joshua  Fisher  of  Dedham,  by  the  Revd 
Samuel  Dexter.  This  Nathaniel  was  a  reputable  physician,  and 
by  a  biographer  is  described  as  "a  man  of  acuteness  and  wit,  of 
great  activity,  and  of  a  cheerful  and  amiable  temper.  To  his 
skill  in  his  profession  he  added  a  knowledge  of  natural  philos 
ophy,  astronomy  and  mathematics." 

Upon  his  marriage  he  added  the  business  of  tavern  keeper 
to  his  professional  pursuits. 

His  son  Fisher  Ames  was  born  Oct.  24,  1737,  and  on  the  nth 
of  November  the  same  year,  his  wife  died,  the  son  surviving 
her  only  until  Sept.  17,  1738. 


24  THE   AMES   FAMILY. 

In  the  settlement  of  this  estate  a  lawsuit  developed;  the 
Doctor  claiming  inheritance  through  his  son  according  to  the 
Province  L,aw,  and  being  opposed  by  others  who  claimed  under 
the  Knglish  common  law. 

The  case  was  many  years  before  the  courts  and  was  finally 
decided  in  favor  of  the  Doctor;  this  being  the  first  time  the 
principle  was  established  that  the  estate  ascended  to  the  father 
as  next  of  kin  to  the  son,  notwithstanding  the  intervening  life 
estate  in  Hannah,  widow  of  Capt.  Joshua  Fisher. 

This  being  a  cause  cclebre  and  the  Doctor  being  much  annoyed 
at  the  law's  delay,  could  not  resist  the  temptation  to  lampoon  the 
Court,  the  source  of  his  annoyance.  The  following  account  is 
given  in  Worthington's  History  of  Dedham,  1827,  note  p.  92  : 

"The  Supreme  Court,  (two  judges  dissenting)  decided  that  it 
did  ascend.  Dr.  Ames,  although  the  successful  party,  expressed 
his  dislike  at  the  conduct  of  the  dissenting  judges,  (one  of  which 
was  Paul  Dudley,  the  Chief  Justice,)  by  causing  the  whole  Court 
to  be  painted  on  the  large  sign-board  of  his  tavern,  sitting  in 
great  state  in  their  large  wigs,  each  Judge  being  clearly  recog 
nized.  An  open  book  was  before  them,  underneath  which  was 
written  ''province  laws."  The  dissenting  judges  were  represented 
with  their  backs  turned  towards  the  book.  The  Court  hearing 
of  the  sign,  sent  the  sheriff  to  bring  it  before  them.  Dr.  Ames 
heard  the  order  given,  being  then  in  Boston,  and  by  good  luck 
and  hard  riding,  had  just  time  enough  to  pull  down  his  sign 
before  the  sheriff  arrived  at  Dedham.1 


xAs  stories  never  lose  anything,  but  are  liable  to  be  elaborated,  con 
trary  to  the  general  custom  of  devastating  time ;  it  is  further  related  in 
connection  with  this  incident,  that  the  Doctor  had  sufficient  margin  in  his 
race  with  the  sheriff,  to  not  only  take  down  the  offensive  "bush,"  but  to 
substitute  in  its  place  a  board  with  the  legend  <fA  wicked  and  adulterous 
generation  seeketh  after  a  sign,  and  there  shall  no  sign  be  given  unto  it." 
If  not  for  the  incident  related,  the  Doctor  might  have  died  and  made  no 
sign. 


Neare&b  aKnxtor 

ic^r =£ — _.-^-   I^^J     ~ 


-.- 


THE  TAVERN   SIGN 


THE   TOWN   OF   DEDHAM.  25 

NOTE.  The  plate  on  the  opposite  page  is  a  copy  of  the  original  sketch 
made  by  Dr.  Ames  for  the  sign,  the  sketch  having  been  found  recently 
among  his  papers. 

The  characters  represented  on  the  Tavern  Sign,  commencing  on  the 
left  of  the  illustration,  are : 

BENJAMIN  LYNDE,  appointed  Judge  1745;  appointed  Chief  Justice  ^769; 

died  1781. 

RICHARD  SAI/TONSTAI,!,,  appointed  Judge  1736;  died  1756. 
PAUI,   DUDLEY,   appointed  Judge    1718;    appointed   Chief  Justice    1745; 

died  1751. 
STEPHEN  SEWAI.IV,  appointed  Judge  1739;  appointed  Chief  Justice  1752; 

died  1760. 
JOHN  GUSHING,  appointed  Judge  1747;  resigned  1771;  died  1775. 

Upon  the  original  sketch  of  the  sign  the  following  words  are  written  : 

"Sir, 

I  wish  I  could  have  some  talk  on  ye  above  subject,  being  the  bearer 
waits  for  an  answer  shal  only  observe  Mr  Greenwood  thinks  yt  can  not  be 
done  under  ^40,  old  tenor." 

During  the  prevalence  of  the  small-pox  in  Massachusetts  in 
the  winter  of  1763-4  and  the  following  spring,  Dr.  Ames's  sons 
were  attacked  with  this  malady  and  they  were  sent  to  a  Hospital 
at  Boston  then  in  charge  of  a  Doctor  Mather.  The  appended 
letters  will  be  of  interest  as  showing  a  portion  of  the  methods 
practiced  at  that  day,  as  well  as  evidencing  that  there  were 
schools  of  medicine  in  the  Colonies,  and  diversity  of  opinion  also. 
Sr. 

I  Reed  yours  of  the  23d  Ins*.  I  was  from  the  begining  fully  Satisfyed 
that  my  Sons  were  under  your  Care,  and  am  aboundantly  thankfull  that 
Providence  has  hither  to  Smil'd  upon  your  Practice.  I  am  glad  you  are  a 
Fellow-Sharer  in  that  Harvest  of  Honours  which  results  to  the  new  Doctors 
on  this  Question.  ( Custom  in  this  Country  has  distinguished  you  & 
your  brethren  from  the  Bostonians  by  the  Appellation  of  New  Doctors.) 

We  Americans  well  know  what  is  meant  by  an  Indian  gift,  that  is  to 
make  a  present  but  expect  more  in  return  than  we  give.  Just  so  the 


26  THE   AMES   FAMILY. 

Mercenary  World  treats  you,  because  you  have  done  us  so  much  Good  in 
Carrying  of  us  well  through  a  Tremendous  Distemper  we  will  Imploy  our 
Breath  in  your  Praises :  the  next  generation  will  look  back  on  those  *  * 
element  (?)  who  have  acted  their  part  on  the  Stage  in  Boston  in  this  affair 
A.  D.  1764  as  we  now  look  back  on  Borehave  and  Sydenham,  the  merits  of 
the  former  is  acknowledged  concerning  Mercury  in  this  Distemper  and 
the  latter  for  his  Instituting  of  the  Case  Regimen.  I  think  it  is  the 
greatest  thing  that  ever  was  acheived  in  the  Art  of  Medicine  to  disarm  so 
dreadfull  a  Distemper  of  all  its  terrors  and  dangers. 

Pray  Continue  your  care  for  my  Sons.  Caution  them  not  to  rebel 
against  yours  and  Nature's  prohibitions  least  they  should  be  taught  by 
fearfull  Example  that  the  Small-Pox  in  no  Stage  will  be  trifled  with. 

I  am  Sr  yr  most  obedt  Humble  Serv*, 
DEDHAM,  March  26,  1764.  NATHL  AMES. 


Worthy  Sr.  I  return  my  hearty  thanks  to  the  grate  disposer  of  all 
events  &  to  you  as  the  Instrument  for  Carrying  my  Sons  so  far  through 
the  Small-Pox,  so  (that)  they  May  return  with  Safty  to  a  House  I  have 
provided  for  their  reception  ;  I  have  just  payd  away  a  large  Sum  since  my 
Sons  entrd  the  Hospital ;  and  it  is  now  perfectly  low  Water  with  me  but 
be  so  kind  as  to  send  me  your  Bill  and  also  the  Bill  for  Nursing  and  all 
other  demands  and  I  will  Discharge  them  as  soon  as  possible,  the  Young 
Man  that  lives  with  me  Son  to  Mr.  Seth  Sumner  of  Milton  is  about  to 
come  to  you  to-morrow  provided  you  will  give  directions  concerning  his 
coming  into  Town.  I  also  expect  Doctr  Gerould  but  he  is  not  yet  come. 
I  shall  use  my  Intrest  to  send  what  Patients  offer  to  you  but  the  bearer 
waits  with  company  therefore  in  Hast  I  subscribe  your  Friend  and  very 
Humble  Servt  NATHL  AMES. 

DEDHAM,  April  5,  1764. 


THE   TOWN   OF   DEDHAM. 


27 


O^ 


***       // 
•  9 


0<jdk 


^ 

*  ' 


28  THE   AMES   FAMILY. 

In  1725  Dr.  Ames  commenced  the  publication  of  his  almanacks, 
the  first  being  for  the  year  I726.1  His  taste  for  astronomy  being 
acquired  from  his  father  (Nathaniel),  who  took  a  deep  interest  in 
such  studies.  He  published  them  continuously  for  thirty-nine 
years  and  prepared  a  portion  of  the  fortieth  for  the  year  1765. 

Dr.  Ames  married  Oct.  30,  1740,  a  second  wife,  Deborah, 
daughter  of  Jeremiah  Fisher,  by  whom  he  had:  i.  Nathaniel, 
born,  1741 ;  graduated  at  Harvard,  1761  ;  was  a  physician;  died 
at  Dedham,  in  1822,  leaving  no  children.  2.  Seth,  graduated  at 
Harvard,  1764;  also  a  physician,  who  died  at  Dedham,  1778. 
3.  Fisher,  one  of  the  most  brilliant  men  ever  produced  in  this 
country  ;  born,  April  9,  1758  ;  entered  Harvard  College  at  twelve 
years,  and  graduated  1774.  He  died  July  4,  1808,  aged  50  years, 
and  was  interred  at  Dedham.  4.  Deborah.  5.  William. 

The  Boston  Evening  Post,  Monday,  July  16,  1764,  concerning 
the  decease  of  Dr.  Ames,  says :  "  About  a  fortnight  ago  was 
seized  with  a  painful  billious  disorder,  which  was  followed  with 
a  nervous  fever,  and  last  Wednesday  morning  (July  1 1)  died,  at 
Dedham,  Doctor  NATHANIEL  AMES,  aged  56  years.  Besides  his 
practice  in  Physick  he  followed  the  study  of  Astronomy  from 
his  youth.  He  has  published  an  ALMANACK  annually  for  38 
years  past,  to  the  great,  very  great  Acceptance  of  the  Inhabitants 

1  A  few  years  since  the  late  Ellis  Ames  Esq.,  of  Canton,  Mass.,  stated 
that  "  the  first  Almanack  by  Nathaniel  Ames  was  for  the  year  1725,  which 
we  have  often  seen,  and  which  of  course  was  finished  in  the  latter  part  of 
the  year  1724,  &c."  I  think  the  best  evidence  is  the  Almanack  itself,  and 
the  Doctor's  own  statement  therein.  (See  re-production  of  the  pages  of 
Almanack  1726  on  pp.  5  to  8.)  The  statement  in  the  almanack  1765,  made 
by  his  son  relative  to  "  the  fortieth  almanac  he  (his  father)  ever  published," 
is  not  to  be  considered  except  to  verify  the  fact  that  the  almanack  1765 
was  prepared  almost  entire  before  the  first  Dr.  Ames  deceased.  Neither 
should  the  age  of  the  Doctor  in  1725  (less  than  16  years  as  stated)  be  urged, 
as  precocity  in  almanac  making  was  known  aforetime.  It  is  of  record  that 
Increase  Gatchell  aet.  16  produced  an  Almanack  at  Boston  in  1695,  and  the 
same  author  at  the  same  age  produced  another  in  1715. 


THE   TOWN   OF    DEDHAM.  29 

of  this  Province,  as  also  to  the  neighboring  Colonies  and 
Provinces." 

The  Boston  Gazette,  of  the  same  date,  adds:  "His  remains 
were  decently  interred  last  Saturday  afternoon  (July  14)." 

After  the  decease  of  Doctor  Ames,  some  persons  endeavored 
to  profit  by  his  fame,  by  publishing  an  almanack  for  the  year 
1766,  stating  that  the  "son  of  the  lately  deceased  Dr.  Ames, 
declined  furnishing  the  Public  with  an  Almanack  for  the  year 
1766,"  adding  that  "The  Author  has  put  this  Almanack  into  the 
same  Form  with  those  published  by  the  late  Dr.  Ames,  whose 
annual  performances  of  this  Sort  gave  general  satisfaction." 
This  almanack  was  issued  over  the  authorship  of  "  Mr.  Ames." 

After  the  decease  of  Dr.  Ames,  his  widow  continued  to  keep 
the  Tavern  until  her  marriage  with  Richard  Woodward,  when 
the  hostelry  passed  under  the  title  of  THE  WOODWARD  TAVERN. 

The  second  Dr.  Nathaniel  Ames,  (the  third  of  the  name)  was 
born  at  Dedham,  Oct.  9,  1741,  and  died  there  July  22,  1822.  He 
graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1761,  studied  medicine,  received 
his  degree  of  M.  D.,  was  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Medical 
Society,  and  was  a  successful  practitioner  of  his  profession  at 
Dedham  for  over  50  years.  He  was  also  Clerk  of  the  Court  of 
Common  Pleas  for  the  County  of  Norfolk,  and  of  the  Court  of 
Sessions  from  1793  during  its  existence. 

"Dr.  Ames  was  an  intense  partisan  of  the  Republican  school, 
and  his  political  opinions  are  expressed  without  any  reservation 
in  his  Diary,"  now  being  published  in  Dedham  Historical 
Register,  and  which  covers  a  period  1758  to  26  June,  1821. 

"The  Diary  is  valuable  for  the  extended  period  of  time  it  was 
continued,  for  its  concise,  comprehensive  and  accurate  state 
ments,  which  made  it  entirely  reliable,  and  it  reflects  a  good  deal 
of  the  spirit  of  that  period,  which  included  the  years  before  and 
during  the  Revolution,  as  well  as  the  first  thirty  years  of  our 
national  life." 


3O  THE   AMES   FAMILY. 

"  From  this  Diary  (now  in  possession  of  the  Dedham  Historical 
Society),  the  intelligent  reader  will  easily  infer  that  Dr.  Ames 
was  a  man  of  uncommon  acuteness  as  an  observer,  a  student  of 
varied  tastes,  fond  of  investigation,  especially  in  scientific 
matters,  of  quaint  humor,  strong  in  his  prejudices,  and  altogether 
a  man  of  great  originality  and  force." — Dedham  Hist.  Register, 
}  W.  /,  />.  10. 

He  erected  his  residence  in  Dedham  in  1772,  and  resided 
there  until  his  decease.1 

He  was  married  by  the  Revd  Mr  Clark  of  the  Episcopal 
Church  at  Dedham,  on  the  i-j-th  of  June,  1775,  to  Miss  Meletiah, 
sister  of  Jeremiah  Shuttle  worth,  the  first  postmaster  of  Dedham. 

That  some  idea  may  be  formed  of  the  manner  of  boy  and  man 
he  was,  the  following  extracts  from  his  Diary  will  be  found 
interesting. 

Cambridge  Septr  2oth  1758.  They  who  see  this  in  future  times  may 
know  that  it  is  the  covering  of  an  old  Almanack  1758.  And  do  not  despise 
old  times  too  imich.  for  remember,  that  2  or  3  centurys  from  the  time  of 
seeing  this,  you  will  be  counted  old  times  folks  as  you  count  us  to  be  so 
now,  many  People  in  these  times  think  the  Consumation  very  nigh,  much 
more  may  you  think  so,  and  do  not  think  yourselves  so  much  wiser  than 
we  are  as  to  make  yourselves  proud,  for  the  last  day  is  at  hand  in  which 
you  must  give  an  account  of  what  you  have  been  about  in  this  state  of 
Probation,  &.  very  likely  you  are  more  given  to  Vice  than  we  are,  and  we 
than  the  last  Century  folks  ;  if  you  have  more  arts  than  we  have  that  you 
yourselves  have  found  out,  impute  it  not  to  our  inability  that  we  could  not 
find  them  out,  for  if  we  had  had  only  those  very  arts  that  we  have  now, 
when  we  first  came  to  settle  in  X.  America,  very  like  we  should  have 
found  out  those  very  things  which  you  have  the  honour  to  be  the  Invent 
ors  of. 

Dinner  is  ready  I  must  leave  off. 

:The  residence  is  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Dr.  J.  P.  Mayiiard. 


THE   TOWN   OF   DEDHAM.  31 

June  22,  1758.  "  Roman  Father"  play  performed  (?  Boston). 

July     3,  Cato  "  "  (Warren's  Cham.) 

6,  "  to  perfection. 

14,  more  perfect. 

Apr.  20,  1759.  "  Drummer"  acted  at  Hows. 

July     6,  "  Revenge"  acted. — father  came. 

Sept.    7,  Cato. 

Nov.  23,  "  Revenge"  (at  Bowman's  ?  Boston). 

June  13,  1760.  Acted  "  Tancred  and  Sigismunda  "  for  which  we  are  like 

to  be  prosecuted. 

Sept.    9,  1761.  Boston  People  flock  up  to  Newport  to  see  the  plays  by  the 

English  Actors. 

Nov.  12-13.  In  tne  evening  acted  a  Play — rebuked  for  it  by  our  Parents. 

-V-Oct.  12,  1763.  Mr  Benj.  Franklin  here — famous  Dr  Franklin.1 

July     5,  1764.  Went  Bost»  for  a  Doctor  to  my  Father. 

6,  Went  Watertown  for  a  Doctor. 

7,  Father  got  a  nervous  Fever. 

8,  Doctors  Convers  &  Sprague  pronounce  my  Father  almost 

irrecoverable. 

9,  call'd  up  to  see  my  Father  die. 

10,  Convers  has  better  Hopes  of  my  Father. 

n,  6  o'Clock  A.  M.  My  Father's  noble  and  generous  Soul  took 

her  Flight  into  the  Region  of  Spirits. 

Death  I  defy  thee,  use  thy  utmost  Force 

My  noble  Parent  has  a  fair  Divorce. 

Here  plunge  thy  Dart,  thy  last  poor  Thrust  now  give 

Nor  let  a  Monster  so  ungratefull  live 

As  I,  who  thus,  my  Father  have  misus'd, 

And  vainly  tho't  by  him  I  was  abus'd. 

July  13,  1764.  Mrs.  Nazrow  here.  Now  leaning  on  my  Father's  CofHn.  I 
could  not  help  writing  the  last  Words  he  ever  said  to  me. 
Scil :  Natty,  Natty,  is  it  not  very  hard  that  I  cannot  have 
one  Trial. 

August  13,         much  engaged  in  Calculating  Eclipses. 

29.         very  busy  calculating  for  a  new  Almanack. 

1  The  last  three  words  were  written  later.     Possibly  Benjamin  came  up 
from  Philadelphia  to  consult  concerning  almanacs,  jokes,  etc. 


32  THE   AMES   FAMILY. 

Sept.  10.  preparing  a  Dress  for  the  Almanack. 

Nov.    i.  Stamp    Act   takes    place.     Grenville    &   Rush  hanged  in 

effigy. 

5.  Pope  Devil  and  Stampman  hanged  together. 

13.  Undertake  to  act  the  Orphan. 

20.  Scholars  punished  at  College  for  acting  over  the  great  and 

last  day  in  a  very  shocking  manner,  personating  the  Jude, 
etertat  Devil,  &c. 

Dec.  18.  Mr  Oliver1  oblig'd  by  the  People  to  resign  his  office  at  the 

Tree  of  Lib.  &  makes  Oath  before  Mr-  Dana  never  to  act 
in  it. 

19.  News  that  our  proceeding  against  the  Stamp  Distributors 

&  Opposition  to  the  Enaction  of  the  Stamp  Act  meets 
with  the  Approbation  of  the  Merchants  at  home  &  others 
in  general. 

20.  The  Connecticut  people  far  outshine  the  other  Govm*s  in 

the  Cause  of  Liberty  &  merit  the  Blessings  of  all  Pos 
terity. 

23.  Many  people  drink  for  want  of  comfortable  Food.     Stamp 

Act  has  this  only  happy  Effect,  viz  :  It  unites  the  Colonies. 

If  the  Art  of  Physick  consisted  in  the  knowledge  only  of 

Medicines  &  their  Virtues  then  every  Apothecary  would 

be  the  best  Physician. 

1766. 

Sept    4.  I  was  deeply  engaged  in  calculating  for  an  Almanack  for  1767  & 

[fly  leaf]  broke  off  by  the  importunity  of  my  Mother  to  settle  the  Estate, 
who  they  not  agreeing  to  take  care  of  the  Tarv  n  whilst  I  could 
make  an  Almanack,  so  that  my  character  will  be  spoiled  &  I 
deprived  of  the  only  means  of  getting  a  living  in  this  World. 
Wherefore  I  pray  God  to  take  my  Soul  into  the  next  scene  of 
Being  where  I  hope  to  know  everything  intuitively  for  whh  I 
now  grope  about  by  the  dim  light  of  Reason. 

June  12.  Calculating  for  1767 — very  dry  time. 

Sept    4.  Laid  aside  Astronomy  &  tho'ts  of  publishing  an  Almanack. 

1  Oliver  was  Secretary  of  the  Province  and  was  appointed  Distributor 
of  Stamps. 


THE   TOWN   OF   DKDHAM.  33 

8.  Reed  a  letter  from  Edes  &  Gill  desiring  to  have  the  copy  of  an 

Almanack. 

20.  Gill  here  about  Copy  of  an  Almanack,     disagre. 
Nov.    8.  Went  Milton  &  Boston.     M'Alpine  copy  aim. 

12.  M'Alpine  here. 

Dec.     2.  Very  cold,  returned  from  Boston  with  new  Almanacks. 
Aug     5.  Sun's  Eclipse  came  on  rather  sooner  than  the  time  I  said  perhap 
[fly  leaf]       3  Minutes  in  the  midst  thereof  it  was  a  very  serene  air  but  a 
peculiar  gloominess  overspread  the  horizon  such  as  I  never 
saw  before. 

Aug     7.  Draper   put   in   Thursday   Paper  that  ye  Eclipse  nearly  agreed 
with  the  Gentlem"  who  favored  Dr.  Ames  with  his  calculat"- 
best  observation  of  the  Eclipse  at  Newport. 

Sept.  24.  Never  let  me  write  again  to  the  Printers  of  Boston  News  Papers 
for  they  are  all  Knaves  Liars,  Villains  to  serve  their  Intrest  & 
when  they  appear  most  Friendly  have  most  of  the  Devil  in 
their  Hearts. 
(Dr.  Ames  bore  on  hard  to  the  pen  which  wrote  this  entry. — ED.) 

Oct.  i.  Had  a  conversation  with  a  gentle^  about  my  Almanack  obtain 
ing  a  patent  of  the  Minister  of  State  for  the  sole  printing  & 
vending  thereof,  this  Gentleman  thinks  that  by  the  recom 
mendation  of  Friends  I  might  obtain  it  for  less  than  20  Guineas. 
The  Friends  I  have  tho'ts  of  applying  to  are  George  Apthorp 
of  London,  Brother  to  alderman  Trecothick  a  man  of  great 
Influence  &  to  John  Winthrop,  Esq.,  Professor  of  Harvard 
Col.  F.  R.  S.  &  to  Sam.  Dexter,  Esq.  to  write  to  his  old  cor 
respondents  in  London  &  to  Mr.  Sheriff  Greenleaf  of  Boston 
&  to  Mr.  Fayerweather  of  Narraganset  in  Colony  of  R.  Island 
&  to  Edmund  Dana  now  in  England  married  into  a  noble 
Family  &  to  Thomas  Palmer  now  in  London  both  my  Friends, 
but  all  will  avail  but  little  unless  I  can  invent  something  new 
&  useful  to  mankind. 

Country  People  complain  that  I  have  mentioned  no  Snow  in 
nex  year's  AlmanK 

1767. 

Oct.  7.  Was  at  Boston  had  conversation  with  McAlpine  about  Copy  of 
an  Almanack  he  would  not  give  200^  unless  I  would  take  it  all 


34  THE   AMES   FAMILY. 

in  almanacks.  Recd  a  letter  from  Mein  that  he  was  provided 
with  a  copy  but  knew  of  a  person  who  would  give  a  moderate 
Price. 

8.  Was  at  Boston  and  agreed  to  let  Edes  &  Gill  have  my  copy  for 
150  they  engaging  on  their  words  &  honor  to  raise  it  to  200^" 
next  year  if  possible  &  let  me  have  their  Paper  or  Gazette  i 
year  from  this  time.  I  paying  Mumford  for  brigng  also  to 
to  supply  me  with  Almanacks  at  135.  6d  per  doz.  before  they 
expose  any  to  sale  anywhere  or  send  any  off  to  be  sold. 
19.  Carry'd  copy  of  Almanack  for  1768  to  Edes  &  Gill  Might  had  100 
Dollars  for  it  of  Mein. 

Oct.  20.     This  day  compleats  the  26th  year  of  my  age. 

Nov.  13.     Went  Boston.     Case  not  come  on.     Got  i  gro.  Almanacks. 

Oct.  18.  Vastly  hurried  about  my  Almanack  for  1768 1  would  exhort  myself 
to  begin  calculation  earlier  so  that  I  might  have  time  (to)  fill 
up  with  useful  &  entertaining  things  against  another  year  to 
stop  the  progress  of  other  Almanacks  especially  Bickerstaffs 
which  is  like  to  have  a  great  sale,  being  printed  on  a  good 
Type  &  full  of  useful  and  entertaining  things. 

1768. 

Jan.  19.  The  Eclipse  happend  much  as  this  Almanack  says — it  look't  dark 

&  gloomy  in  the  midst  of  it. 

Feb.  25.  Sam.  Sterns  of  Boston  wants  to  know  how  to  make  Almanacks. 

June  i.  Began  Calculations  for  1769.     Make  slow  progress.     Called  off. 

June  29.  Totally  eclipsed  according  to  this  Almanack. 

Oct.  29.  Sent  my  copy  for  next  years  Almanack  to  Fleet  for  2o£. 

Dec.  27.  got  half  a  gross  Almanacks  of  Fleet. 

1769. 

June  3.  Observd  the  Transit  of  Venus  happen  according  to  this  Almanack. 

Nov.  i.  Went  Boston  agreed  about  Almanacks. 

2.  Lows  Almanack  published. 

3.  Wests  Almanack  published. 

Nov.  16.  Thadd8-  Stowel  who  has  been  in  York  Govt  brought  a  line  to  me 
from  Win-  Coye  requesting  yt  I  would  insert  in  my  Almanack 
two  Courts  held  in  ye  County  of  Cumberland,  in  New  York, 
one  the  first  Tuesday  in  June,  ye  other  the  first  Tuesday  in 


THK   TOWN   OF   DKDHAM.  35 

November,  but  whether  Superior  or  Inferior  Courts  does  not 
say,  yet  says  that  Chester  in  the  Shire  Town. 
Dec.    5.     Went  Boston  brought  i  groce  Alrnan.  fr.  Fleets. 

1771 

Oct.  24.     Ezek'l  Russel  offer'd  40  Dollars  for  my  copy  (of)  Almanack. 

Nov.    7.     Russel  came  again  about  the  Copy. 

Dec.    8.     Bzekl  Russell  came  here  about  Almanack. 

1772. 
Nov   28.    Went  to  Boston  dd  copy  Almanack. 

1773- 

May     9.     Old  Dick  Woodward1  struck  me  withis  (sic)  saw. 

May   12.  Dick  Woodward  fined  for  striking  me  &  bound  to  good  Behavior. 

Nov  25.  Annual  Thanksgiving  which  I  celebrated  with  much  Thankfulness 
in  a  little  boiled  Rice  at  home  alone,  then  came  in  my  Brother 
William  who  had  good  provisions  sent  him  from  his  Mother  & 
dind  here  at  my  House  upon  it,  of  which  I  could  not  so  much 
as  taste.  Mrs.  Whiting  my  Housekeeper  prevented  my  having 
Provisions  of  my  own  cooked  &  went  among  her  Relations  to 
dine  leaving  me  to  cook  for  my  Self. 

1774- 

Jan       8.  Went  (to)  Boston  got  30  (of  my)  new  Almanacks. 

[7].  Title  Page  Verse  for  next  years  Almk  composed  as  I  lay  in  Bed 
this  Morning  Jany  7,  1774. 

Let  Tyrant  Princes  distant  Climes  explore 

For  wealth  &  power  drench  in  human  gore ! 

Let  fleets  &  armies  make  their  subjects  pine 

And  cannon's  mouths  assert  their  rights  devine 

Let  Spaniel  Courtiers  lick  their  masters  feet 

And  conscious  meanness  make  them  feel  they're  Great.2 

1  Richard  Woodward  married  the  Widow  Ames,  the  mother  of  Dr. 
Nathaniel  2d. 

2 This  is  a  little  different  from  the  verses  on  the  title  page  of  Almanack 
1775,  which  see. 


36  THE   AMES   FAMILY. 

Oct  12.  The  Fair  Stranger  here  at  my  House  said  to  be  a  german  Princess 
in  disguise. 

[flyleaf]  Old  Richard  Woodward  has  declared  that  he  will  fleece  our  Estate 
as  much  as  possible  &  accordingly  Oct.  12  carried  off  several 
Loads  of  unthrashed  Rye  &  carried  off  all  the  last  years  Corn 
&  threatens  to  carry  away  the  Hay  out  of  the  Barn  I  (in)  defi 
ance  of  Law  &  Equity  threatens  to  strip  &  waste  as  much  as 
possible. 

1775- 

April  19.  The  regular  forces  sent  by  the  British  Government  to  Boston 
march  out  to  Lexington  &  fired  on  a  Company  of  men  & 
killd  six  then  immediately  marchd  off  to  Concord  to  seize  our 
Province  Military  Stores  destroy^  some  Flour  2  Cannon  & 
then  upon  being  attack'd  by  our  People  began  to  retreat  & 
continued  fighting  all  the  way  to  Charlestown  30  men  lost  on 
our  side  many  more  on  theirs.  I  went  &  dressed  the  wounded. 

The  following  extract  from  the  cook  book  of  Dr.  Ames  will 
serve  to  illustrate  his  political  bias,  as  well  as  to  indicate  his 
predilection  for  all  the  comforts  of  a  home. 

GOOD  DEMOCRATIC  CAKE. 

3  quarts  Flour 
i  lb  Butter 
\Yz  Sugar 

i^  Raisins 

4  Eggs 

YZ  glass  Wine 
i      glass  Brandy 
oz.  y2  Cinnamon — half  an  ounce 

Some  Corianders 
oz.  ]4  Alspice 

Yeast  i  glass  or  half  or  half  a  jill  sot  rising  over  night — and  next  morn 
ing  work  the  sugar  &  butter  together  half  an  hour  at  least,  it  will  make 
your  cake  lighter  and  whiter. 

After  it  has  puff 'd  up  light  work  in  the  rest  except  the  Raisins,  which 
add  at  seting  into  Oven. 


THE   TOWN   OF   DEDHAM.  37 

FUDDERAL1  PANCAKE. 

Mix  boulted  Rye  flour,  boulted  Indian  meal,  each  a  quart  with  salt  into 
three  pints  milk.  Fry  in  lard. 

Good  enough  for  the  Junto. — too  good  ! 

His  part  in  the  events  which  led  up  to  the  final  separation  of 
the  Colonies  from  the  mother  country,  is  condensed  as  follows 
from  "  The  25oth  anniversary  of  the  settlement  of  Dedham." 

Foremost  among  the  friends  of  America  in  the  English  Par 
liament  who  had  been  constantly  laboring  for  the  repeal  of  the 
Stamp  Act,  was  William  Pitt,  afterwards  the  Earl  of  Chatham. 
It  was  he  who  maintained  that  "  America  being  neither  really 
nor  virtually  represented  in  Westminster,  cannot  be  held  legally 
or  constitutionally  or  reasonably  subject  to  obedience  to  any 
money  bill  of  the  kingdom."  The  Stamp  Act  was  repealed 
March  18,  1766,  and  the  news  was  received  in  Boston  on  the  i6th 
of  the  following  May.  The  repeal  was  hailed  with  the  greatest 
demonstrations  of  joy. 

Dr.  Ames  writes  Feb.  15,  1767,  that  he  "went  to  Boston  with 
Mr.  Haven  and  Battle.  Spoke  Pitt's  bust  of  Mr.  Skilling." 

Finally,  February  26,  Dr.  Ames  again  went  to  Boston,  and 
"  brought  the  bust  of  Pitt  for  the  Pillar  of  Liberty." 

The  original  inscriptions  in  Latin  and  English  were  undoubt 
edly  composed  by  Dr.  Ames.  He  was  accustomed  to  make 
entries  in  Latin  in  his  diary,  and  the  style  of  the  English  is 
characteristic.  He  writes :  "  Aug.  6.  Howard  altered  erepsit 
into  evulsit"  traces  of  which  alteration  are  now  discernible. 

It  strikes  one  strangely,  perhaps,  to  find  on  this  stone,  erected 
by  the  Sons  of  Liberty,  an  expression  of  satisfaction  that  their 
loyalty  to  King  George  III.  had  been  confirmed  by  the  repeal  of 
the  Stamp  Act.  But  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  it  was  then 
ten  years  before  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  and  if  any 

1  Dr.  Ames  always  spelled  Federal  in  this  manner,  and  always  spoke  of 
the  Federalists  as  "  the  Junto." 


38  THE   AMES   FAMILY. 

entertained  the  thought  of  independence  as  a  contingency  which 
might  occur,  certainly  no  one  avowed  it.  The  patriots  fondly 
indulged  the  hope,  rather,  that  in  the  repeal  of  the  Stamp  Act 
all  their  trials  were  ended,  and  that  the  oppressive  policy  of  the 
British  ministers  toward  America  had  been  reversed.  But  their 
joy  was  short-lived,  and  by  the  passage  of  the  act  imposing  a 
duty  upon  tea  and  other  articles  passed  in  June,  1767,  the  series 
of  measures  was  continued  which  brought  on  the  Revolution. 

As  the  conflict  approached,  the  Pillar  of  Liberty  naturally 
ceased  to  be  an  object  of  interest.  Dr.  Ames  records,  "  May  nf 
1769.  The  Pillar  of  Liberty  was  overthrown  last  night." 
Perhaps  this  was  due  to  the  revulsion  in  popular  feeling.  It  is 
not  certain  that  it  was  afterward  replaced.  But  there  were  those 
living  not  many  years  since,  who  remembered  in  the  last  decade 
of  the  eighteenth  century  both  pillar  and  bust  lying  upon  the 
ground,  and  the  latter  being  kicked  about  by  the  boys  of  that 
period.  It  is  certain  that  no  one  took  pains  to  preserve  them, 
and  they  are  now  irrecoverably  lost.1 

At  the  decease  of  Dr.  Ames,  he,  having  no  issue,  gave  all  his 
property  by  will  to  his  wife's  niece  Hannah,  daughter  of  Jere 
miah  Shuttleworth.  After  the  decease  of  Dr.  Ames'  widow  in 
1826,  she  sold  the  house,  and  it  is  supposed  that  it  was  probably 
the  money  ($2,300)  from  that  sale,  that  she  deposited  about 
1830  in  the  Massachusetts  Hospital  Life  Insurance  Co.  This 
fund  she  never  disturbed  but  allowed  it  to  accumulate,  and  at 
her  death  (Feb.  22,  1886,  aged  86  years)  that  company  paid  her 
executor  as  the  amount  due  thereon,  over  $40,000.  From  this  a 
legacy  of  $10,000  was  paid  to  the  Dedham  Historical  Society  to 

JThe  image  of  Pitt  also  ceased  to  be  an  object  of  interest  in  other 
places.  The  writer  remembers  seeing  when  a  boy,  the  headless,  and  arm 
less  remains  of  a  statue  of  Pitt  standing  outside,  and  behind  the  railing  of 
the  "  Fifth  Ward  Hotel,"  on  West  Broadway  in  New  York  City ;  naught 
remaining  to  give  it  any  dignity  save  the  marble  Roman  toga  in  which  it 
was  clad. 


THE   TOWN   OF   DKDHAM.  39 

build  its  building,  and  a  legacy  of  like  amount  to  the  Dedham 
Public  Library. 

From  this  source  the  Dedham  Historical  Society  obtained  the 
land  on  which  their  building  is  located — and  where  the  house  of 
Miss  Shuttleworth  formerly  stood — and  all  the  valuable  papers, 
diary,  and  the  complete  set  of  almanacks  formerly  owned  by  Dr. 
Ames,  which  is  now  believed  to  be  unique. 


Society  Building  erected  1886-7,  from  the  bequest  of  Hannah  Shuttleworth. 

Fisher  Ames,  a  younger  brother  of  Dr.  Nathaniel  Ames,  was 
not  given  to  astronomy  or  almanacks,  but  was  a  lawyer  of 
prominence  in  Massachusetts;  and  during  the  period  before, 
and  during  the  Revolution  was  active  in  maintaining  the  spirit 
of  independence,  and  at  the  conclusion  of  the  struggle  was  one 
of  the  master  minds  in  the  formation  of  the  Constitution,  and 
our  present  form  of  government. 

His  residence  was  erected  in  1795,  and  he  deceased  there  on 
July  4,  1808,  aged  50  years.  The  house  and  grounds  are  now 
owned  by  Fred.  J.  Stimson,  Esq.,  known  to  the  literary  world  as 
"  J.  S.  of  Dale."  The  house,  while  the  old  frame  is  still  in  it,, 
has  been  completely  changed  in  both  internal  arrangement  and. 
exterior  appearance. 


4o 


THE   AMES   FAMILY. 


The  site  of  the  Law  Office  of  Fisher  Ames,  built  in  1794,  was 
on  the  corner  of  Court  and  High  streets,  near  the  Pitt's  Head. 
The  building  was  afterward  remodelled  and  reconstructed  as  a 
dwelling-house.  It  was  removed  when  the  new  Court  House 
was  built,  and  again  when  the  Dedham  Bank  building  was 
erected.  It  was  a  perfect  sample  of  the  old  time  country 
lawyer's  office.  After  the  death  of  Fisher  Ames  it  was  occupied 
by  his  son,  John  Worthington  Ames,  and  then  by  James  Rich 
ardson  ;  and  subsequently  by  Theron  Metcalf,  afterward  Judge 
of  the  Supreme  Court.  The  late  Ex-Governor  Clifford,  Judge 
Seth  Ames,  and  many  other  lawyers  of  eminence  in  this  and 
other  States  there  read  law  with  Judge  Metcalf. 


THE  OLD  TAVERN. 

(See  frontispiece.) 

A  ROUND  this  caravansary  now  known  only  by  tradition — it 
having  been  swept  away  by  the  march  of  improvement  in 
1817,  after  Mrs.  Woodwards  death — centers  much  of  the  historic 
interest  of  early  Dedham  and  the  Ames  family. 

It  stood  on  the  estate  owned  at  the  time  it  was  taken  down 
by  Fisher  Ames,  and  here  both  he  and  his  brother  Nathaniel 
were  born. 

This  house  had  been  a  tavern  continuously  over  one 
hundred  years,  Lieut.  Joshua  Fisher,  the  original  proprietor,  was 
licensed  by  the  General  Court,  Oct.  20,  1658  "to  sell  strong 
waters  to  relieve  the  inhabitants,  being  remote  from  Boston,  for 
one  year."  The  Lieutenant,  besides  his  military  occupation, 
was  a  surveyor,  an  apothecary,  and  an  inn-holder.  Capt.  Joshua 
Fisher1  succeeded  his  father  as  an  inn-holder.  He  died  March 

1  He  devised  this  estate  to  his  wife  Hannah  for  life,  and  reversion  to 
his  daughter  Mary,  and  she  became  the  first  wife  of  Dr.  Nathaniel  Ames, 
the  elder,  whom  she  married  Sept.  14,  1735.  At  this  time  the  old  tavern 
was  raised  six  inches  above  its  foundations,  the  walls  filled  with  brick ; 
it  was  fitted  with  closets,  and  completely  finished  "  to  the  turning  of  the 
keys,  inside  and  out." 

The  tavern  was  known  as  the  "Ames  Tavern"  until  about  the  time  of 
the  Revolution,  when  it  became  known  as  "  Woodward's  Tavern,"  or  "  the 
Sign  of  the  L/aw  Book." 

The  illustration  fronting  the  title,  represents  the  building  as  it  appeared 
at  the  time  of  its  demolition,  and  for  some  years  previous  thereto.  The 
sketch  was  made  from  the  description  given  by  several  of  the  oldest 
inhabitants  of  Dedham,  two  of  whom,  aged  about  ninety-three  years  (twins) 
and  one  other  also  living  in  the  possession  of  all  her  faculties,  at  the 


42  THE   OLD   TAVERN. 

ii,  1730.  The  site  of  the  tavern  was  near  the  corner  of  High 
and  Court  streets,  fronting  on  High  street  (see  map).  In  the 
journal  of  Madam  Knight  kept  by  that  lady  during  her  journey 
from  Boston  to  New  York,  1704,  Dedham  is  mentioned  as  one 
of  the  towns  through  which  she  passed.  She  called  on  the  Rev. 
Joseph  Belcher  the  minister  of  Dedham  since  Nov.  29,  1693,  and 
later  in  the  day  dropped  in  at  the  Ames  Tavern  (then  the  Fisher 
Tavern  kept  by  Capt.  Joshua  Fisher)  in  search  of  a  guide  for  a 
further  journey  the  same  night.  There  was  a  drinking  room  in 
the  brew-house,  and  one  small  beer  vessel  which  perhaps  is 
what  Madam  Knight  styles  "  the  pewter  engine,"  to  which 
their  lips  were  tied  at  the  time  of  her  visit. 

When  Madam  Knight  returned  Mar.  2,  1705,  she  again  passed 
through  Dedham,  this  time  partially  on  foot  (her  horse  having 
given  out)  and  partly  by  water,  she  having  met  with  a  mishap 
at  the  causeway  (see  map)  on  account  of  Dwight's  brook  having 
exceeded  its  license. 

In  later  years  when  Dr.  Ames  was  mine  host,  the  repute  of  its 
larder,  (and  probably  also  the  "  tap,")  was  unquestionably  good, 
despite  the  attractions  of  the  rival  establishment  of  "  Gay's." 
The  letter  of  Ezekiel  Price,  (a  person  from  his  association  and 
employment  eminently  capable  of  judging)  will  serve  to  interest 
those  who  are  curious  as  to  the  cuisine  of  the  early  days.1 

remarkable  age  of  one  hundred  and  three.  These  three  persons  well 
remember  the  old  house  and  many  traditions  connected  therewith.  The 
room  at  the  left  of  the  entrance  as  we  face  the  picture,  was  evidently  the 
"  tap  room  "  in  ancient  times — the  windows  being  screened  on  the  inside 
with  wooden  shutters  as  would  be  proper — an  heart-shaped  opening  being 
cut  in  each  to  admit  the  light.  When  the  room  was  lighted  at  night,  these 
"  heart  openings  "  were  made  more  distinct,  and  "  late-at-night "  neighbors 
journeying  homeward  would  remark,  "  See  the  light  shine  through  Mrs. 
Woodward's  heart." 

iEzEKiEi,  PRICE,  before  the  Revolution  was  the  confidential  Secretary 
of  several  of  the  governours  of  the  province. 

Soon  after  independence  was  declared,  he  was  appointed  Clerk  of  the 
Courts  of  Common  Pleas  &  Sessions  for  the  Co.  of  Suffolk;  in  which 


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THE   OU>  TAVERN.  43 

"  From  the  early  settlement  and  until  a  very  recent  period  the 
Tavern  was  a  recognized  and,  it  may  be  said,  an  Ordinary  insti 
tution  of  Dedham.  But  Woodward's  Tavern  became  historic, 
not  merely  as  having  been  the  birthplace  of  Fisher  Ames  and 
the  dispensary  of  good  cheer,  but  as  having  been  the  place  where 
the  famous  Suffolk  Convention  was  organized  Sept.  6,  1774,  to 
which  Dedham  sent  five  delegates.  A  large  committee  was 
chosen  to  prepare  resolutions,  and  the  convention  then  adjourned 
to  meet  at  the  house  of  Daniel  Vose,  in  Milton,  where  on  Friday, 
Sept.  9,  1774,  Gen.  Joseph  Warren  reported  to  the  convention 
the  Suffolk  resolutions  which  he  had  drafted.  They  wrere  read 
several  times  and  unanimously  adopted. 

'  Those  who  now  or  in  after  times  shall  examine  the  journal 
of  the  earliest  Continental  Congress  in  search  of  the  first  recorded 
resolution  to  try  the  issue  with  Great  Britain,  if  need  be  at  the 
point  of  the  sword,  will  find  the  doings  of  this  convention  entered 
at  length  upon  its  pages,  appearing  as  the  medium  through 
which  the  object  of  their  assembling  was  first  presented  to  their 
deliberations,  and  serving  as  the  basis  of  their  subsequent  pro 
ceedings.  The  house  of  Richard  Woodward  most  of  us  remem 
ber.  In  it  was  born  Fisher  Ames.  Was  it  not  the  birthplace  of 
the  American  Revolution?'  f>1 

services,  as  well  as  those  of  Notary  Publick  &  Magistrate,  he  remained 
20  years. 

He  was  also  for  a  long  time  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Selectmen  for 
the  town  of  Boston,  and  in  these  &  many  other  stations  he  acted  his  part 
well  in  Society  ;  until  that  decay  which  so  often  attends  the  age  of  three 
score  &  ten,  made  it  necessary  for  him  to  retire  to  his  family.  In  private 
life  he  was  amiable,  as  in  publick  life  he  was  useful. 

April  30,  1793,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Histor 
ical  Society,  to  which  he  was  a  liberal  benefactor.  He  died  July  15,  1802, 
aged  74  years.  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  Vol.  viii,  p.  85.  He  was  a  great 
grandson  of  the  famous  Ezekiel  Cheever,  of  whom  the  miracle  is  recorded, 
that  for  seventy  mortal  years  he  was  a  schoolmaster,  and  "  left  off  at  last 
without  being  tired,  but  simply  because  he  was  obliged  to." 

1  Haven's  address,  2Ooth  anniversary  of  the  Town  of  Dedham,  p.  45. 


44  THE   OLD  TAVERN. 

The  map1  on  opposite  page  represents  prominent  localities  in 
the  town  of  Dedham  in  the  time  of  Dr.  Ames  and  his  two  sons. 

Referring  to  the  homes  of  the  early  ministers,  the  house  (i) 
in  rear  represents  the  site  of  the  house  built  and  occupied  by 
John  Allin,  the  first  minister,  and  where  his  successor,  Wm. 
Adams,  also  lived ;  but  the  3d  minister,  Joseph  Belcher,  soon 
after  his  ordination  in  Nov.  1693,  built  the  house  (2)  nearer  the 
main  road  the  Parish  having  contributed  60  £  thereon,  and  this 
was  also  occupied  by  Dexter  and  Haven,  the  4th  and  5th  minis 
ters,  and  was  taken  down  in  1819  to  make  a  site  for  the  present 
ist  Congregational  Church. 

1  The  map  inserted  needs  little  if  any  additional  explanation,  but  the 
very  peculiar  title  (Beere  Waye}  given  to  the  lane  or  roadway  leading  from 
the  main  road  to  the  "  old  burial  ground,"  may  seem  somewhat  misleading 
at  the  first  glance.  When  I  first  examined  the  map  I  assumed  that  the 
name  had  some  reference  to  the  electric  fluid  of  commerce,  so  potential  at 
the  present  day  in  ward  caucuses.  The  connection  between  the  tavern 
and  the  liquid  helped  to  confirm  me  in  my  mistaken  notion ;  and  had  it 
not  been  for  timely  reference  to  a  marginal  note  on  the  correspondence  I 
had  received — relative  to  the  map — I  had  undoubtedly  blundered  into  a 
very  egregious  error,  which  no  amount  of  apology  could  have  ever  set 
right. 

I  might  have  endeavored  to  excuse  myself  by  taking  the  ground  that 
the  "  beere  waye  "  if  followed  closely,  would  sooner  or  later  lead  from  the 
tavern  to  the  burial  ground,  but  I  fear  that  that  would  not  have  consti 
tuted  a  saving  clause. 

The  "  beere  waye  " — I  learn  from  the  notation  alluded  to, — was  simply 
the  path  along  which,  on  funeral  occasions,  the  "bier"  with  its  burden 
was  borne  to  its  final  resting  place. 

Our  language  contains  some  very  embarrasing  spells — even  the  latter 
orthography  fails  to  fully  satisfy. 


HISTORICAL. 


TTAVING  now  introduced  our  authors  and  their  antecessors 
to  the  audience,  a  brief  review  of  the  general  condition  of 
things  "at  home,"  and  in  the  Colonies  during  the  period  1726 — 
1764,  may  be  desirable.  The  Hanoverian  Georges  had  begun 
the  management  of  home  affairs,  Mr.  John  Law  had  exploited 
his  South  Sea  or  Mississippi  Cash  and  Confidence  Association, 
Mr.  Richard  Turpin  and  Mr.  John  Sheppard  had  expiated  their 
very  taking  ways,  and  made  their  last  appearance  at  Tyburn. 
Robert  Walpole  was  keeper  of  the  King's  conscience,  and  mur 
ders  and  robberies — the  latter  in  person  or  by  proxy — were  of 
daily  occurrence,  the  "  Rogue's  March  "  being  the  most  popular 
anthem  of  the  period. 

In  the  north,  the  Scots  were  evincing  their  most  thorough 
disapprobation  of  capital  punishment,  and  gave  a  practical 
exhibition  of  its  horrors  by  hanging  Capt.  John  Porteous  at 
Edinburgh. 

Rows  of  various  calibre  and  importance  were  taking  place 
on  the  continent ;  pugnacious  John  Bull  taking  a  hand  and 
laying  the  foundation  of  English  finance — the  National  Debt. 

While  John's  attention  was  thus  distracted  Mr.  James  Stuart 
was  moving  on  the  English  throne ;  "  Charlie  over  the  Water"  was 
becoming  interested,  "  Johnnie"  Cope  was  trodden  on  during  the 
southward  progress  of  the  Pretender,  and  his  name  only  per 
petuated  in  song.  The  Duke  of  Cumberland  tried  conclusions 
with  the  Scottish  army  at  Culloden  in  April,  1746,  and  that  was 
the  "  be  all  and  the  end  all "  of  that  affair. 

A  contemporary  historian  thus  sums  up  the  general  condition 


46  HISTORICAL. 

of  things  at  home ;  "  morality  was  lax,  education  was  limited, 
poverty  was  abundant,  extravagance  was  very  common,  and 
wealth  extremely  insolent." 

In  the  colony  of  Massachusetts  things  were  somewhat  in  the 
condition  of  the  mother  country,  only  opportunities  were  some 
what  limited. 

The  population  of  the  commonwealth  at  this  period  was 
about  94,000 — 2,000  of  which  were  slaves,  1,200  civilized  Indians — 
the  balance  having  probably  been  worn  out  in  experimenting  to 
save  this  small  crop — and  the  balance  of  the  returns  were  whites — 
several  of  whom  earned  the  munificent  compensation  of  two 
shillings  per  day,  possibly  payable  in  store  orders. 

Currency  of  the  flat  quality  was  largely  predominant,  and  its 
expansive  nature  had  the  effect  of  reducing  crime — notably  high 
way  robbery — to  a  minimum.  The  honest  granger  of  the  period 
could  wheel  the  products  of  his  farm  from  Dedham  to  Boston  on 
a  Saturday  morning,  in  a  hand  cart,  dispose  of  the  same — and 
in  the  evening  himself  and  family  could  take  home  the  proceeds 
in  "  old  tenor,"  carrying  in  their  arms  what  the  cart  would  not 
hold,  undisturbed  by  any  "  knight  of  the  road,"  whose  sympathy 
for  the  toiling  Cincinnati  would  be  made  manifest  by  a  counte 
nance  more  expressive  of  sorrow  than  of  covetousness. 

The  stern  amusements  of  a  previous  generation  were  dropping 
into  desuetude,  and  the  whipping  post  and  stocks  were  not  used 
to  illustrate  the  Articles  of  Faith.  Stage  plays  were  being  per 
formed  by  the  students  at  College  (when  they  weren't  caught  at 
it),  newspapers  were  not  }^et  of  daily  occurrence.  Cotton  Mather, 
the  high  priest  of  Boston,  "the  literary  behemoth  of  New  Eng 
land,"  had  been  gathered  to  his  fathers,  (1728)  and  the  plethora 
of  literature  from  that  source  had  ceased.  The  press  was  turning 
out  much  that  was  interesting,  each  printing  establishment  had 
1  its  annual  Almanack,  and  chiefest  among  these  was  the  produc 
tion  of  our  author,  which  is  set  forth  in  the  following  pages. 


J&l 

!  ALMANACK 

t  For  the  Year  of  Our.  Lord  CHRIof  . 
i      726: 

!  And  from  the    C? eanorf of >1td;\?orJd3  ! 

8C£ordmg  to 'the'bcil'of*PVophan«  iFftbry.  5;- 

j:;,- ,  But(  by  fhe  Account:  of^e  ^'lo/,'"  ScjipcG^f',  * 
|  It  berng  the  Second    after  ^^a^Vc?  Lwp«Yc^,\ 
Andtlie  Twelfth  Vcar  dl  the  Reign  of  Our  MoCt 

Where"' a  is    ConTgln'd    tKe^X'fi^.Jffd'HfJr  'P-'^fes  .of  i" 
the  LUi3iIr»«rieSr» the''P/5fU/^  M?  tidirvSc  •/vt^^u-!?'  , 
Jfps8*.    i  he' '  $».ifisi  Rsf{.:-:g •  xid'^erttng,  Ti*ne    f 

tf-'mlrt:"'*  Together    \vr(t    nuny   other  Thii^s" ;' 
neceffary  for  iuch  a.  \Vork.         ,  J 

Calcttiatefc  for    the  '$kria?a$0ffo&Qfi,  N.  En^tsp^^   • 


>  ,N  A  T  H  A  \  t£  L  '  A  ME'S,    J«n. 
^Utfarit  in  Fby/tzk  and  Jj/ltono:-n?lt 


A"  0  >T  Swweenfan£red 

//«!  /i«»».i/  tourfeJi?fr$:'W 

Kn\vi'ye  Rewjlationi  in  thh  tim?  ?>;ive  frszn, 


<^  '.ttt$  YZar  I  WSff  Il3>$$%?  ff&jl'i!*TS9f{<]!  ti'dZi  pcif/t.V' 

-^4-:Q  O  D ,kwwi  &k?ji?$i  Live  ttato  tfa  MX*. 

\    £  0    •  7'  '•)  N'-i  Printed  so<i  Sold  by  /L  G?-!:f  ?;. 

Sold  a  lib  at  die  Book&Ugrs  Shop,;^^!  ,7  a.  6          ,"4 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR    1726 


BY  NATHANIEL  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  and  Astronomy. 


BOSTON:    Printed  and  Sold  by  B.  Green,  and  Sold  also  at  the  Book 
sellers  shops.     I726.1 

NO  W  Seventeen  hundred  &  Twenty  Six  the  Sun, 
His  annual  course  since  CHRISTfas  Birth  hath  run, 
Strange  Revolutions  in  this  time  have  been 
In  divers  Lands,  Kingdoms  and  Countries  seen, 
Some  Years  were  happy,  some  with  Woes  perplext, 
And  GOD  knows  who  shall  Live  unto  the  next. 


This  Eclipse  of  the  Moon  happens  so  near  the  Great  Bene 
volent  Jupiter,  the  Effects  'tis  hop'd  will  not  be  ill. 

JANUARY. 

Our  Northern  Climes  in  shiv'ring  Cold  remain 
Till  Glorious  Phoebus  shall  return  again. 

More  Snow  than  Lollies. 

FEBRUARY. 

Cold  Weather  still  on  us  attends 
We  feel  it  at  our  Finger's  ends. 


GREEN,  JR.,  printed  the  Almanacks  from  1726  to  1733, 
inclusive,  and  perhaps  those  for  1734-1735.  He  was  a  son  of  Bartholomew 
Green,  also  a  printer,  and  grandson  of  Samuel  Green,  the  "  Colledge 
printer  "  at  Cambridge,  who  came  over  with  Governor  Winthrop  in  1630. 
Bartholomew,  Jr.,  was  also  connected  with  John  Draper,  his  brother-in- 
law,  in  the  business  until  about  1734,  and  later  with  John  Bushell,  and 
Bezoune  Allen.  This  latter  partnership  continued  until  about  1751,  when 
Green  removed  with  his  printing  materials  to  Halifax,  Nova  Scotia,  where 
he  died  shortly  after  his  arrival. 


48  ALMANACK  FOR  1726. 

Who  out  of  Fortune's  smiles  do  run, 
All  men  their  Company  will  shun. 

MARCH. 

Now  comes  the  Spring,  Sol  by  his  splendid  Rays 
Turns  gloomy  Nights  into  bright  shining  Days. 

Expectations  of  Peace. 

APRIL. 

Nature,  that  wealthy  Dame,  now  briskly  Pours 
Upon  the  Earth  her  Fresh  and  Fruitful  Showers. 

Some  in  Dissembling  have  such  Art, 
Are  Saints  in  Show — Devils  in  Heart. 

MAY. 

The  wing'd  Musicians  now  do  Sing 
To  entertain  the  welcome  Spring. 

JUNE. 

Now  Sol  from  Cancer  sends  his  Rays 
Which  makes  with  us  the  longest  Days. 

JULY. 

The  Husbandman  walks  o're  his  fertile  Fields, 
Which  many  charming  Pleasures  to  him  yields. 

The  Author  born  22.  July  1708. 

AUGUST. 

L/end  them  that  want :  th'  Almighty  fav'reth  such 
And  in  short  time  repays  them  twice  as  much. 

There  ne'er  was  any  Age  so  clear 
But  in  her  Face  some  Faults  appear. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Phoebus  with  the  Crelestial  Scales  doth  now 
An  equal  weight  to  Days  and  Nights  allow. 

OCTOBER. 

Now  some  before  cold  Boreas  fly 
And  many  Thousands  fall  and  Die. 

Christopher  Columbus  found  out  the  New  World  Oct.  u,  1492. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1726.  49 


NOVEMBER. 


No  Art  preserves  from  Age  :  devouring  Time 
Makes  every  thing  (nay,  the  whole  World)  resign. 


DECEMBER. 


The  Year  is  past  away,  our  Glass  doth  run, 
And  while  we  speak,  the  present  Minute's  gone. 


KIND  READER. 

The  Method  of  this  Almanack  is  so  plain  that  it  needs  no 
Explanation,  except  the  place  of  Saturn  and  Jupiter,  which  is 
over  the  last  Column,  at  the  top  of  every  Page,  for  the  ist,  8th, 
1 6th  and  24th  Days  of  every  Month  in  this  Year. 

The  Names  and  Characters  of  the  Planets,  Signs,  Aspects 
and  Nodes  are  these, 

The      (  Saturn  1?,  Jupiter  21,  Mars  d\  Sol  or  Sun  €>,  Venus  ?, 
Planets,    (      Mercury  § ,  Luna  or  the  Moon  Q). 

YJ.        (Aries  T,  Taurus  tf,  Gemini   H,  Cancer  @,  Leo  ct, 
~.  ]  Virgo  TIP,  Libra  =£=,  Scorpio  fll,  Sagitarius  ^,  Capri- 

>lgns'    (corn  V?,  Aquarius  ««,  Pisces  X. 

The  Old  Aspects  are  Five  in  Number,  as  the  Conjunction  c/, 
Sextile  3K,  Quartile  D,  Trine  A,  Opposition  o°. 

The  New  Aspects  are  Eight  in  Number,  viz. 

Semisextile        SS          Tridecile  Td  v 

Decile  dec          Sefiquadrate        SSq       *U1       ;X,         V~ 

Quintile  Q  Biquintile  Bq         Semiquadrat      S 

The      f  The  Dragons  Head  Q,  Dragons  Tail  ^, 
Nodes,  1  Part  of  Fortune  0. 

The  Vulgar  Notes  of  this  Year  are  : 

Golden  Number 17  )   j  Epact — 

Cycle  of  the  Sun 27  j    (  Dominical  Letter 


,  The  Glorious  Planet  Venus  is  Occidental  or  Evening  Star, 
till  the  25  of  March,  from  thence  Oriential  or  Morning  Star, 
to  the  Years  End. 


50  ALMANACK  FOR  1726. 

TO    THE   READER. 
COURTEOUS  READER, 

I  Have  here  adventured  to  present  you  with  an  Almanack  for 
the  Ensuing  Year.  It  being  my  first  made  Public  by  the  Press; 
Should  it  find  Acceptance,  I  have  my  End  and  shall  receive 
sufficient  Encouragement  to  Undertake  somewhat  more  for  your 
benefit.  Thus  Reader  for  your  sake  I  have  exposed  my  self  to 
the  dangerous  &  sharp  Teeth  of  envious  Detractors,  which  is  a 
great  Hazard  especially  in  this  polish'd  Age,  among  so  many 
fine  &  curious  Wits,  who  scarcely  can  approve  of  anything,  tho' 
never  so  Judiciously  Composed.  There  has  been  no  pains,  nor 
care,  wanting  to  render  these  Calculations  as  free  from  Errors 
as  possible,  yet  if  any  fault  committed  by  my  Pen  or  Press  pass 
Uncorrected,  Excuse  it ;  in  so  doing  you  will  not  only  do 
your  self  a  Kindness,  but  also  oblige  him,  who  is  a  Friend  to  all 
that  are  Mathematically  inclined,  and  a  real  L,over  of  the  most 
sublime  study  of  Astronomy. 
Bridgwater,  Octob.  i2th,  1725.  N.  AMES. 


Read  then  and  Learn  but  don't  all  faults  Object, 
Since  they  can  only  judge  that  can  Correct ; 
To  whom  my  Works  appeal,  and  if  I  find, 
The  Sons  of  Art  to  favour  them  inclin'd ; 
With  their  Propitious  smiles,  it  shall  suffice, 
To,  counterpoize  the  Frowns  of  Enemies. 


Twice  in  a  Century  (  Old  Indians  say,) 

Our  Land  abounds  with  Bears  &  Beasts  of  Prey ; 

Whereof  some  do  embrace  Proud  Neptune's  Waves 

And  with  the  Scaly  Tribe  swim  to  their  Graves  ; 

Others  Retreat  towards  the  Frigid  Zone, 

And  dwell  in  Desert  yet  to  us  unknown ; 

They'll  come,  no  more  from  whence  they  do  retire, 

Until  a  Jubilee  of  Years  Expire. 

(Dele  Sup.  C.  Boston,  the  First  Tuesday  in  May.) 


OH  1726.— This  Almanack  partakes  largely  of  the  quality 
of  contemporaneous  weather  books,  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  the 
author  was  but  a  youth,  and  liable  to  follow  at  first  the  well  worn  path 


ALMANACK    FOR    1727.  51 

laid  out  by  previous  star-gazers.  The  couplets  at  the  head  of  each 
monthly  page  are  rather  of  a  better  conception  than  the  productions  of 
the  average  almanack  bard, — and  the  interlined  wisdom  give  promise  of  a 
maturing  mind. 

The  "  Expectations  of  Peace"  under  March,  doubtless  allude  to  the 
difficulties  with  the  Indians,  as  neither  the  mother  country  nor  the 
Colonies  were  at  this  time  otherwise  involved. 

The  allusion  to  the  Eclipse  of  the  Moon,  and  its  probable  "  effects  "  the 
benevolent  Jupiter  gives  some  evidence  of  the  author's  inclination  toward 
the  prevailing  belief  in  astrology. 

His  apologetic  epistle  displays  his  evident  fear  of  adverse  criticism,  so 
general  at  this  period,  and  notably  so  among  the  almanack  makers,  but  he 
solaces  himself  by  "dropping  into  poetry"  to  appease  the  would-be  censor. 
The  jingle  concerning  the  Indian  tradition  is  curious,  as  being  a  relic  of 
aboriginal  ideas,  never  to  my  observation  having  been  referred  to  by  any 
other  writer. 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1727 


BY  NATHANIEL,  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  and  Astronomy. 

BOSTON:    Printed  and  Sold  by  B.  Green,  and  Sold  also  at  the  Book 
sellers  Shops,  1727. 


"  Swift  Winged  Time  Feather'd  with  Flying  Hours, 
Whose  Hungry  Jaws  all  Things  on  Earth  Devours, 
And  when  the  space  of  a  few  Years  and  Days 
Shall  be  expir'd,  we  all  must  go  our  ways 
To  our  long  Home,  where  all  in  Silence  mourn, 
From  whose  dark  shores  no  Travellers  Return, 
Where  Mean  and  Great  on  equal  Basis  stand, 
No  Servants  there  obey,  nor  Lords  Command." 


That  which  is  got  by  Fraud  and  Knavery, 
Shall  be  a  Curse  unto  Posterity. 


52  ALMANACK  FOR  1727. 

JANUARY. 

Cold  Frost  &  Snow  may  in  this  month  appear 
But  not  so  piercing  as  it  was  last  Year. 

Saturn  &  Venus  do  joyn  here 

With  Mars  to  meet  Heav'ns  Charoteer. 

FEBRUARY. 

Boras  his  Blast  from  frozen  Lakes  bestows 
Upon  the  Barth  ;  and  Whitens  all  with  Snows. 

Industrious  Nature  whom  all  do  implore 
She  rolls  in  Riches  of  all  kinds  of  Store. 
Her  Gifts  are  large,  and  free  by  which  you  live, 
As  you  received  it  freely, — freely  Give. 

MARCH. 

The  Ram  that  bore  fair  Haellen  once  away 
Hath  made  dark  Night  equal  to  lightsome  Day. 

APRIL. 

Now  Swelling  Buds  on  bloomy  branches  spring, 
And  chatt'ring  Birds  their  pleasant  Notes  do  sing. 

That's  a  knavish  trick  but  he  must 
Answer  for  it. 

MAY. 

Olympic  Jove  with  angry  Mars  doth  Rise 

And  with  their  dreadful  Thunder  Rend  the  Skies. 

JUNE. 

Upon  Green  Trees  Thousands  of  young  Birds  fly 
To  be  instructed  in  their  Harmony. 

JULY. 

Now  Beasts  do  seek  some  shady  Place,  to  shun 
The  scorching  fury  of  the  radiant  Sun. 

For  what  shall  it  profit  a  man  if  he 
Should  gain  the  whole  World  &c. 

AUGUST. 

Unwholesome  Gales  Contagious  Auster  blows, 
And  trembling  Barth  some  sad  Distempers  Shows. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1727.  53 

While  Titan  shines  now  make  your  Hay, 
Men  live  by  Work,  &  not  by  Play. 


SEPTEMBER. 


The  fertile  Earth  with  various  Fruits  abound, 

The  Fields  with  grateful  Crops,  Ceres  hath  crown'd. 

OCTOBER- 

Now  Leaves  &  Fruits  from  Trees  are  stole  away, 
And  Night  encroacheth  on  the  Hours  of  Day. 

NOVEMBER. 

Terra  doth  Mourn  because  she  must  Entomb 
The  seed  she  bore,  again  within  her  Womb. 

Now  Mars  &  Sol  have  joined  here 
To  Warm  the  Austral  Hemisphere. 

DECEMBER. 

Waters  are  pav'd  with  Ice  as  firm  as  Stone, 
And,  without  Faith,  are  daily  walk'd  upon. 

Reader,  think  not  I  write  in  vain 
If  it  should  Snow,  when  I  say,  Rain. 


INGENIOUS  READER. 

Your  kind  accepting  my  poor  Endeavours,  and  the  general 
Reception  my  Almanack  found  (with  you)  the  Year  past,  hath 
Encouraged  me  to  present  you  with  One  for  the  year  to  come, 
which  I  have  Endeavour'd  to  furnish  with  Matter  fit  for  such  a 
work.  I  have  at  the  desire  of  several  of  my  Readers,  Inserted 
the  Moon's  Rising  &  Setting  in  the  Sixth  Column  of  this 
'Almanack,  which  I  hope  will  be  kindly  Accepted,  and  I  doubt 
not  but  you  will  find  my  Calculations  to  Agree  with  Observa 
tion. 

As  to  what  I  have  predicted  of  the  Weather,  it  is  from  the 
Motions  &  Configurations  of  the  heavenly  Bodies,  which  belongs 
to  Astrology :  L,ong  Experience  testifies  that  the  Sun,  Moon 
and  Stars  have  their  Influence  on  our  Atmosphere,  for  it  hath 
been  observed  for  Seventy  Years  past,  That  the  Quartile  & 
Opposition  of  Saturn  &  Jupiter  produce  Wet  Seasons  ;  and  none 


54  ALMANACK  FOR  1727. 

will  deny  but  that  the  Sun  affordeth  us  his  benign  Rays  &  kind 
influence,  and  by  his  regular  Motion  causeth  Spring,  Summer, 
Autumn  &  Winter ;  and  if  the  Moon  can  cause  the  daily  Hbbing 
and  Flowing  of  the  Tide,  and  has  the  vast  Ocean  subject  to  her 
government,  she  can  certainly  change  the  Air  which  is  Thin, 
and  Tenuious.  In  fine,  The  Stars  of  Heaven  give  us  such  a 
Noble  Idea  of  the  Infinite  Power,  Wisdom  &  Glory  of  God,  that 
they  Invite  our  Thoughts  to  Soar  among  the  heavenly  Glories. 
Thus  wishing  the  Contemplation  thereof  may  afford  Praise  to 
the  Infinite  Creator  and  Contriver  of  them  all. 

I  remain 
A  Friend  to  all  Lovers  of  Urania, 

N.  AMES. 
Bridgwater,  Octob.  20,  1726. 


"  Now  unto  Heav'n  direct  thy  curious  Eyes, 
And  view  the  wonderous  Glory  of  the  Skies  : 
And  send  thy  Mind  to  walk  the  highest  Sphere, 
And  know  the  Heav'ns  as  if  thou  hadst  been  there. 
Each  Star  above  doth  in  a  silent  Story, 
Declare  the  Greatness  of  their  Maker's  Glory." 


on  1727. — The  youthful  Astronomer  deems  no  Apology 
necessary  for  his  offering  the  present  year.  His  salutatory  still  savors 
of  the  modes  and  fashions  of  the  day — Tempus  fugit.  The  monthly 
verses  are  more  classical  and  scholarly  than  those  of  his  first  issue,  and 
the  expression  of  the  several  old  saws  interpolated  among  his  predictions, 
smacks  of  originality.  The  unexplained  parenthetical  allusion,  under 
April,  to  a  certain  "  knavish  trick,"  doubtless  has  some  local  significance, 
which  is  lost  to  us. 

Under  July,  his  quotation  shadows  forth  some  religious  influence 
which  is  repeated  again  in  the  December  couplet. 

The  sentiment  of  the  November  verse  is  beautiful,  and  the  poetic 
imagery  of  the  seasons  unique.  Sad  November,  indeed. 

In  his  salutatory  for  this  year,  he  explains  how  his  weather  predictions 
are  arrived  at — astrologically,  of  course — and  in  accordance  with  the  expe 
rience  of  years  agone. 

He  evidently  has  thoroughly  imbibed  his  fathers  love  for  Sidereali 
Scientia,  as  his  enthusiastic  devotion  to  the  study  is  shown  in  his  conclud 
ing  lines,  and  the  closing  bit  of  verse. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1728.  55 

THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1728 


BY  NATHANIEL  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  and  Astronomy. 


BOSTON:  Printed  by  B.  Green  and  Sold  at  the  Booksellers  Shops,  1728. 


"  Time  is  devouring  all  that  she  brings  forth, 
And  feeds  on  objects  of  the  rarest  worth, 
She  Changes  all,  and  Dissolution  brings 
To  Mean  and  Great,  to  Clowns  as  well  as  Kings, 
Because  the  Laws  of  unmov'd  Fates  Decree 
That  all  things  born  (on  Earth)  shall  mortal  be 
A  much  more  strong  and  uncontrolled  L,aw, 
Than  any  Mead  or  Persian  ever  saw. 


King  GEORGE  the  Second  proclaim'd  in  London  June  14, 
1727,  &  proclaim'd  at  Boston,  N.  E.,  the  i6th  of  August  follow 
ing  :  Whom  GOD  preserve  from  all  His  Enemies,  and  give  Him 
the  Zeal  of  David,  and  Wisdom  of  Solomon,  to  Chuse  such 
Counsellors,  as  may  act  for  the  Glory  of  GOD  and  tranquillity 
of  His  People ! 

JANUARY. 

From  Northern  Climes  Congealing  Winds  do  blow, 
Which  makes  the  Earth  lye  shivering  in  Snow. 

FEBRUARY. 

Sol's  warm'd  the  South,  and  now  is  Marching  back 
To  Melt  the  Snow,  and  make  the  Ice  to  crack. 

MARCH. 

Wit  bought  with  the  price  of  Woe  is  a  little  too  dear. 

Now  the  warm  Sun  thaws  the  benummed  Earth 
And  Birds  Rejoyce  at  Spring's  Auspicious  Birth. 

Rainy  wet  weather  produced  by  this  Apertio  Portarum  Coeli. 


56  ALMANACK   FOR    1728. 


APRIL. 


In  April  Showers  by  Mystick  Art  Divine 

Is  wrought  the  Quintessence  of  Bread  and  Wine. 

MAY. 

The  Earth  is  cloath'd  with  Springing  Grass,  you  see 
Both  Flowers  and  Leaves  adorn  the  painted  Tree. 

JUNE. 

When  day's  bright  Prince  with  light  inspires  the  Skies 
Night  wand'ring  Stars  with  fainting  Splendour  flies. 

K.  GEOR.  I 
of  blessed  Memory  Died  the  n.  day  1727. 


With  Cadis  Major  Splendid  Sol  doth  meet 
Which  adds  both  Strength  &  Vigour  to  his  Heat. 

Saturn  and  Jove  this  Month  increase 
Among  all  Men  great  talks  of  peace. 

AUGUST. 

Sad  grows  the  Times  with  Melancholy  Chear 
Remember  now  the  Sickness  of  Last  Year. 

SEPTEMBER. 

The  Toylsome  Harvester  with  Sweating  Brow 
Doth  reap  the  interest  of  his  painful  Plow. 

Where  there  is  War,  they  fall  to  blows. 

OCTOBER. 

Thousands  do  fly  from  Winter's  wastfull  Threats 
And  Flora  Dyes  with  Morning  Frosty  Sweats. 

NOVEMBER. 

No  Leaves  on  Trees,  nor  Corn  in  naked  Fields 
And  barren  Earth,  no  Fruit  nor  Comfort  yields. 

Debates  about  Religion  by  those  that  have  none. 

DECEMBER. 

Sol's  nearest  now,  yet  makes  the  shortest  Days 
And  is  to  us  a  Niggard  of  his  Rays. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1728.  57 

OF  THE  ECLIPSES  THIS  YEAR,  1728. 

*****  *  #-  -*-  •:;:- 

The  first  of  these  Eclipses  (moon)  is  Celebrated  in  6  degrees 
of  Virgo,  the  second  Sign  of  the  earthy  Triplicity,  which 
(authors  say)  portends  the  Scarcity  of  Fruit  and  Corn. 

The  second  of  these  Eclipses,  viz :  That  of  the  Sun  on  the 
28th  of  February  happens  in  20  degree  of  Pisces,  the  House  of 
Jupiter,  and  Exaltation  of  Venus:  learned  Authors  affirm,  when 
Jupiter  bears  Rule,  and  is  Lord  of  an  Eclipse  (as  in  this  he  is) 
he  signifies  Glory,  Fertility,  Tranquillity,  Peace  and  Plenty  ;  and 
such  as  are  signified  by  Jupiter,  especially  Ecclesiastical  Persons 
do  flourish  and  live  in  great  Estimation.  The  Laws  are  well 
Executed,  and  many  Upright  and  Just  Judges  are  very  Active 
for  the  Publick  Good ;  new  Customs  or  Privileges,  new  Corpora 
tions,  new  Honours,  &c.,  are  now  most  happily  conferr'd  upon 
People  in  general ;  And  these  are  the  Natural  Portends  of  Jupiter 
when  he  bears  Rule  in  an  Eclipse. 


Kind  READER  : 

In  my  last  Years  Almanack  I  gave  you  a  brief  hint  of  the 
motions  &  Diameter  of  the  Planets  &  their  distance  from  the 
Sun  :  but  above  or  beyond  all  these  Planetary  Globes  is  the 
Firmament  or  the  Region  of  the  Fixed  Stars,  which  are  of  such 
Immense  Distance  from  the  Sun  &  this  Earth  on  which  we 
live,  that  a  Learned  Astronomer  writes,  "  That  if  a  musquet  had 
been  shot  up  at  the  Mosaick  Creation  to  the  nearest  fixed  Star, 
and  continued  its  swiftest  course  all  the  way,  it  would  hardly 
have  arrived  there  by  this  time,  after  the  long  interval  of  above 
Five  Thousand  Years."  These  Immensly  numerous  great  & 
amazing  Systems  of  Globes  or  Worlds  so  much  surpass  this 
Globe  of  Earth  (on  which  we  live)  that  it  degenerates  into  but 
little  more  than  a  point,  when  it  is  compared  with  the  Regions 
above,  and  prodigious  magnitude  of  the  heavenly  Space  &  the 
Bodies  therein  contained. 

Which  innumerable  number  of  heavenly  Bodies  or  Globes 
are  without  doubt,  Worlds,  or  places  of  Habitation  &  Conse 
quently  stock'd  with  proper  Inhabitants :  for  all  the  Multitude 
of  S3^stems  and  Habitable  Worlds  are  created  of  GOD  ;  by  Him 


58  ALMANACK  FOR  1728. 

the  Worlds  are  made,  it  is  said,  in  Heb.  i,  2.  The  Omnipotent 
Being  is  able  to  govern  &  provide  for  Ten  Thousand  Worlds,  as 
well  as  One :  for,  the  Unlimited  extent  of  GOD's  Presence  fills 
the  unfathomable  Abyss  of  Infinite  Extramundane  Space ;  but 
the  consideration  of  such  Immensly  great  &  glorious  Globes 
are  enough  to  weary  the  thoughts,  and  amaze  the  Faculties  of 
inconsiderable  Worms  that  creep  upon  this  little  spot  of  Earth. 
To  wade  no  further  into  this  Immense  Abyss,  I  shall  conclude 
with  the  following  Lines  of  Sir  Richard  Blackmore  : 

"  Hail  King  Supream !  of  Pow'r,  Immense  Abyss  ! 
.      Father  of  Lights !  Exhaustless  Source  of  Bliss  ! 
Thou  Uncreated,  Self-Existent  Cause, 
Controul'd  by  no  Superiour  Being's  Laws ; 
Since  thou  didst  all  the  Spacious  Worlds  display, 
Homage  to  thee  let  all  Obedient  pay, 
Let  glitt'ring  Stars,  that  Dance  their  Destin'd  Ring ") 
Sublime  in  Sky  with  Vocal  Planets  Sing, 
Confed'rate  Praise  to  thee,  O  great  Creator  King.      ) 
Let  the  thin  Districts  of  the  waving  Air 
(Conveyancers  of  Sound)  Thy  Skill  declare, 
Let  Winds  the  Breathing  Creatures  of  the  Skies, 
Call  in  each  vig'rous  Gale  that  Roving  flies 
By  Land  or  Sea  then  one  loud  Triumph  Raise 
And  all  their  Blasts  imploy  in  Songs  of  Praise." 


on  1728. — The  verses  on  title  page  and  those  at  the  head  of 
each  monthly  page  give  evidence  of  a  studious  mind,  and  the  announce 
ment  of  the  succession  of  His  Majesty  George  II  breathes  forth  an 
undoubted  spirit  of  loyalty  to  the  reigning  family,  and  a  desire  for  the 
welfare  of  the  crown. 

The  entire  matter  in  the  Almanack  bespeaks  the  ardent  lover  of  nature, 
and  the  enthusiast  in  the  study  of  the  stars.  The  humor  of  later  years 
begins  to  manifest  itself  in  a  modest  sort  of  way,  interspersed  with  a  mild 
satire. 

That  the  Doctor  held  very  favorable  views  of  Astrologic  art,  is  evident 
from  his  comment  on  the  eclipses,  and  his  quotations  of  what  "  Authors 
say  "  concerning  their  dire  effects  on  earthly  affairs  in  certain  conditions, 
and  their  very  happy  forebodings  in  others. 

And  should  the  Authors  enthusiasm  be  doubted  concerning  his  Stellar 
studies,  and  his  appreciations  of  the  immensity  of  the  universe,  etc.,  as 
well,  one  need  only  read  his  address  to  the  "  Kind  Reader "  and  then 


ALMANACK    FOR    1729.  59 

endeavor  to  deny  the  reflection  of  the  late  John  Phcenix  that  "  there  are 
not  adjectives  (and  perhaps  not  adverbs)  enough  in  the  English  language 
to  enable  a  person  to  speak  the  truth."  The  Doctor  is  to  be  congratulated 
that  he  had  Sir  Richard  Blackmore  to  fall  back  upon,  when  his  own 
language  failed  him  to  do  the  subject  justice. 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1729 


BY  NATHANIEL  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  and  Astronomy. 


BOSTON :  Printed  by  B.  Green,  and  Sold  at  the  Booksellers  Shops. 


Man  was  at  first  a  perfect  upright  Creature 
The  lively  image  of  his  great  Creator. 
When  Adam  fell,  all  men  in  him  transgressed 
And  since  that  time  they  err  that  are  the  best. 
The  printer  errs ;  I  err,— much  like  the  rest 
Welcome's  that  man  for  to  complain  of  me, 
Whose  self  and  works  are  quite  from  error  free. 


NOTE. — Here  for  the  first  time  in  the  Doctor's  publication  appears  the 
"Anatomy" — and  the  Doctor  evidently  is  an' unwilling  illustrator  of  his 
book,  mildly  protesting  in  the  accompanying  verse.  This  household  god 
has  been  religiously  bowed  down  to  and  worshipped  by  both  the  ancient 
and  modern  rustic.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been  originated  under  the 
title  of  homo  signorum  by  Petrus  de  Dacia,  a  firm  believer  in  planetary 
influence,  and  almanack  maker,  who  lived  about  the  year  1300.  This 
frightful  caricature  surrounded  by  the  signs  of  the  Zodiac,  has  always 
occupied  a  prominent  position  in  the  Almanack — mainly  to  gratify  those 
who  had  faith  (which  certainly  is  much  required)  in  the  influences  por 
tended  thereby. 


6o 


ALMANACK   FOR    1729. 


1    7     *    9- 

"he  Anatomy  of  Man\s  Body,  and  what  part  thereof 

f  Represented  by  ibc  \i  Signs  of  ibc  Zodiack. 


Neck 
Throat 


,  and 
Scomach 


Bowels, 
and  Belly 


Secrets 

VS 
Knees 


Y  The  Heacl  &  Face 

~  "ARIES, 
TA\RV5^iGEM1W] 


TL 

Arms   cV 
Shoulders 


Back 

«^v 

Reins  and 
Loins 

< 

Thighs 

& 

Legs 


K  The  Feet, 


The  Blackmoor  may  as  eas'ly  change  his  Skin, 
As  Men  forfake  the  ways  theyV  brought  up  in  ^ 
Therefore  I've  fet  the  Old  Anatomy, 
Hoping  topleafe  my  Country  men  thereby, 
But  whereas  the  Man  that's  born  fc  lives  among, 

pieafe  a  Fickle  throng  ?x 


TbeV-ulgar  Nous  of  Ms  Tear,  1729. 

— .     i?£  Epaft •» 

Cycle  of  the  Sun — aS">  Dominical  Letter C, 


Nott,  The  Planet  $  Vtnui  is -Occidental  or  Evening 
Star  to    the  Third   day   of  June,  and    from 
Oriental  01   Morning  ^car  to  the  Years  End. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1729.  61 

Dr.  Watts,  of  poetic  fame,  was  moved  to  sing  of 

"  The  Ram,  the  Bull,  the  heav'nly  Twins, 
And  next  the  Crab,  the  Lion  shines, 

The  Virgin  and  the  Scales ; 
The  Scorpion,  Archer,  and  Sea-Goat, 
The  Man  that  holds  the  Water-Pot, 

And  Fish  with  glittVing  Tails." 

Almanack  makers  have  largely  been  skeptical  concerning  the  powers 
attributed  to  the  influence  believed  in  by  the  common  people. 

THE   ANATOMIE. 

"  Should  I  but  dare  t'  omit  the  Anatomic, 
Which  long  enough  hath  gul'd  my  country  friend, 
He  with  contempt  would  straight  refuse  to  buy 
This  book,  and  't  is  no  Almanack  contend. 
Ask  him  its  use,  he'le  say  he  cannot  tell ; 
No  more  can  I :  yet  since  he  loves  't  so  well, 
I'le  let  it  stand,  because  my  Book  should  sell. 

— Edward  Pond,  1633. 

Samuel  Clough,  the  author  of  "  The  New  England  Almanack"  for  a 
number  of  years  cast  ridicule  upon  this  idol  of  the  people. 

"  The  Anatomy  must  still  be  in 
Else  the  Almanacks  not  worth  a  pin  ; 
For  Country-men,  regard  the  Sign 
As  though  'Twere  Oracle  Divine 
But  do  not  mind  that  altogether, 
Have  some  respect  to  Wind  and  Weather. 
Man's  Head  and  Face  Heaven's  Rani  obey, 
His  Neck,  the  Neck-strong  Bull  doth  sway ; 
Th'  Arm  twining  Twins  guide  Hands  &  Arms, 
Breast  Sides  and  Stomack,  Cancer  charms 
The  Lion  rules  our  Back  and  Heart, 
Bowels  and  Belly's  Virgo's  part. 
To  Libra  Reins  and  Loins  belong  : 
The  Secrets  to  the  Scorpion. 
The  Archer  doth  the  Thighs  affect 
And  Capricorn  the  Knees  protect 
T'  Aquarius  lot  the  Legs  do  fall, 
The  Feet  to  Pisces ; — And  there's  all." — 1703. 

The  Anatomy's  set  here  again, 
To  show  what  part  the  Sign  is  in  ; 
For  if  it  hath  not  here  its  seat, 
The  Almanack  is  not  compleat. — 1704. 


62  ALMANACK  FOR  1729. 

"  Here  sits  again  the  old  Anotomy, 
Which  Use  to  please  the  Country  People's  eye  ; 
For  if  they  in  this  place  don't  see  his  features 
They'll  not  know  at  what  time  to  Cut  their  Creatures." — 1706. 


JANUARY. 

The  Earth  is  white  like  Neptune's  foamy  face 
When  his  proud  Waves  the  hardy  Rocks  embrace. 

Bad  Weather  a  hatching. 

FEBRUARY. 

Boreas's  chilly  breath  attacks  our  Nature 
And  turns  the  Presbyterian  to  a  Quaker. 

Winter  seems  stronger 
The  Days  are  longer. 

Rome's  sign  will  disturb  his  Holiness. 

MARCH. 

Phoebus  &  Mars  conjoin'd  do  both  agree, 

This  Month  shall  warm  (nay,  more  than  usual)  be. 

I  now  predict  the  Winter's  Death  &  Spring's  Birth. 

Both  Heat  &  Cold  contend  together 
(to  get  the  Day)  about  the  Weather. 

APRIL. 

The  Birds  like  Orpheus  now  all  things  invite 
To  come  and  hear  Melodious  sweet  delight. 

MAY. 

MAY,  like  a  Virgin  quickly  yields  her  Charms 
To  the  Embrace  of  Winter's  Icy  Arms. 

A  cold  May  storm  which  will  pacific  Noisy  Affairs,  & 
Conclude  long  Debates. 

JUNE. 

SOL'S  scorching  Rays  puts  Blood  in  Fermentation 
And  is  stark  naught  to  Acts  of  Procreation. 

JULY. 

THE  Moon  (this  Month)  that  pale-fac'd  Queen  of  Night 
Will  be  disrob'd  of  all  her  borrow'd  Light. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1729.  63 

Now  there's  great  signs  of  Rain  or  Hail 
But  in  Dry  times  great  Signs  do  Fail. 

AUGUST. 

The  Earth  and  Sky  Resound  with  Thunder  Loud 
And  Oblique  Streams  flash  from  the  dusky  Cloud. 

SEPTEMBER. 

The  burthen'd  Earth  abounds  with  various  Fruit 
Which  doth  the  Epicurean's  Palate  suit. 

OCTOBER. 

THE  Tyrant  Mars  old  Saturn  now  opposes 
Which  stirs  up  Feuds  and  may  make  bloody  Noses. 

NOVEMBER. 

Now  what  remains  to  Comfort  up  our  Ljves 
Is  cordial  Liquor  and  kind  loving  Wives. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Chrystal  streams  congeal'd  to  Icy  Glass 
Become  fit  Roads  for  Travellers  to  pass. 

Christmas  is  nigh — The  bare  Name  of  it 

to  Rich  or  Poor  will  be  no  Profit. 


TO  THE  LEGITIMATE  SONS  OF  URANIA. 

GENTLEMEN  : 

All  the  Ephemeries  now  Extant  among  us,  and  Tables  of 
that  nature  containing  the  Eclipses,  Lunations,  Planets  places, 
and  aspects  calculated  for  the  meridian  of  London,  are  notori 
ously  false  for  the  first  four  Months  of  this  Year,  and  differ  from 
the  Truth  as  far  as  light  from  darkness :  but  I  with  much  care 
and  elaborate  Calculations  have  supplied  the  defects  of  the  said 
four  months  in  every  respect,  and  with  much  difficulty  have 
introduced  another  Almanack  into  the  World,  which  is  entirely 
of  my  own  Calculating  and  not  borrowed. 

And  tho'  I  do  not  avouch  the  verity  of  my  Calculation,  yet  I 
doubt  not  but  that  they  will  come  pretty  nigh  the  Truth,  except 
some  Typographical  Errors  intervene.  I  have  inserted  the 
Moon's  Rising  and  Setting  in  the  last  column  of  my  Almanack, 


64  ALMANACK   FOR    1729. 

which  I  doubt  not  but  will  meet  with  general  acceptance  by  my 
Countrymen :  And  tho'  I  have  left  out  the  Planets'  Places  there, 
and  inserted  them  in  the  great  Column  of  the  Weather,  here  and 
there,  where  there  was  room,  yet  it  was  not  out  of  ill  will  to  the 
sublime  Sons  of  Art,  but  because  they  spring  up  so  thinly, 
scarce  one  in  an  hundred. 

And  tho'  my  Brethren  Almanack  makers  be  reckoned  among 
that  Number  yet  they  have  all  (this  year)  built  upon  Colson's1 
Calendar  (a  rotten  foundation)  which  hath  filled  the  first  four 
months  of  their  Almanacks  as  full  of  Krrors  as  there  are  Days 
in  the  same.  I  am  far  from  laying  a  foundation  for  a  long  Con 
troversy  with  those  of  my  own  fraternity,  but  because  I  would 
not  have  the  World  depend  upon  so  great  untruth,  I  would  have 
them  Re-calculate  their  Eclipses,  and  they  shall  find  themselves 
that  they  are  mistaken  :  two  of  'em  make  their  first  Eclipse 
(which  they  say  is  of  the  Moon)  to  be  on  the  24th  Day  of  Feb 
ruary  tho'  by  their  own  Almanacks  the  Moon  is  at  her  first 
Quarter  at  that  time,  and  as  for  their  Eclipse  of  the  Sun  which 
they  make  to  be  on  the  igih  day  of  March  it  is  as  far  from  the 
truth  as  the  other,  for  the  Sun  at  that  time  is  above  forty  degrees 
distance  from  the  Dragon's  head,  which  carries  the  shade  of  the 
moon  to  the  north  more  than  three  times  the  Diameter  of  the 
Earth,  and  therefore  it  is  impossible  in  nature  that  the  Earth 
should  suffer  an  Eclipse  at  that  time.  Thus  much  I  thought  fit 
to  tell  the  World  that  they  might  not  mistake  a  third  in  the 
Number,  and  a  month  in  the  Time  of  the  Eclipses  this  year. 

Octob.  25th,  1728.  NATH.  AMES. 


OH  1729. — The  fear  of  adverse  criticism  which  possessed 
our  Author  when  he  essayed  his  first  Almanack  has  now  borne  fruit,  and 
with  the  tide  of  success  has  floated  in  the  carping  censor,  and  on  his  first 
page  in  this  year's  production  he  casts  a  poetical  "sop  to  Cerberus." 

The  monthly  poetical  offerings  of  the  muse  continue  to  improve. 
Momus  exerts  a  mild  influence,  and  in  some  lines  the  spirit  of  Hippocrates 
is  shadowed  forth  evincing  the  proficiency  of  the  "  Student  in  Physick," 
while  under  November  the  social  qualities  of  the  future  •'  Dedham  inn 
keeper"  are  quite  apparent. 

1  Possibly  Nathaniel  Colson,  a  noted  Almanack  maker  of  London. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1730.  65 

In  his  address  to  the  "  Legitimate  Sons  of  Urania"  the  Doctor  demon 
strates  his  superiority  in  the  world  of  figures,  and  while  apologizing  for 
the  non-appearance  of  certain  Astrological  features  he  berates  his  London 
contemporary  for  his  erratic  conclusions,  and  in  a  left-handed  manner 
sympathizes  with  his  Almanack  making  neighbors  for  their  misfortune  in 
following  blindly,  the  unverified  Ephemerides  of  the  mother  country 
Astronomer.  While  the  Doctor's  argument  is  unanswerable  he  has  opened 
the  door  now  for  continued  controversy  and  aspersion. 

One  of  the  contemporary  almanack  makers  whom  Dr.  Ames  took  to 
task  for  erratic  calculations  was  Mr.  Nathan  Bow  en  who  wrote  under  the 
soubriquet  "a  Native  of  New  England"  and  in  his  Almanack  1730  thus 
replied  to  his  castigator :  "  I  have  once  more  ventured  into  the  world,  not 
withstanding  a  Repulse  I  met  with  the  last  Year,  from  a  Young  Stripling, 
who  under  the  influence  of  Mercury,  gave  his  Pen  a  Latitude  beyond  that 
of  his  Beard ;  but  let  him  know,  That  tho'  he  hath  so  great  a  value  for  the 
merits  of  his  own  performance,  were  I  disposed  to  pick  holes  in  his  Coat, 
I  should  leave  him  in  a  ragged  Condition ;  tho'  I  rather  chuse  to  take  the 
Advice  of  Old  Mecaenas  to  his  friend  Cremutius,  which  was  '  never  to  be 
concerned  at  what  was  spoken  against  him.'  For  (saith  he)  '  If  what  is 
alleged  against  us  be  true,  it  is  rather  our  business  to  Reform  our  selves, 
than  for  others  to  hold  their  Tongues ;  But  if  what  is  said  of  us  be  false, 
so  soon  as  we  show  a  Concern  at  it,  we  make  it  suspected  for  Truth,  the 
Contempt  of  such  Discourses  discredits  them,  and  takes  away  the  pleasure 
from  those  that  raise  them ;  If  you  resent  them  more  than  you  ought  to 
do,  it  is  in  the  power  of  the  most  contemptible  Enemy  to  disturb  the 
Repose  of  your  Life;  and  all  your  power  cannot  secure  you  against 
vexation." 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR     1730 


BY  NATHANIEL  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  &  Astronomy. 


BOSTON:  Printed  by  B.  Green  and  sold  at  the  Booksellers  Shops,  1730. 

Bright  Scenes  do  change,  three  Posting  Years  shan't  Cease 

Before  stern  Mars  stares  in  the  Face  of  Peace, 

Steel  Glitt'ring  Spears  the  very  Fields  affright 

And  Europe  all  seems  fir'd  with  armour  bright. 

Saturn  &  Jove  contend  and  will  not  yield 

So  dead  &  Wounded  pave  the  bloody  Field. 


66  ALMANACK  FOR  1730. 

JANUARY. 

Could'st  them  mount  up,  and  be  as  far 
As  (in  our  Sight)  the  farthest  Star ; 
Thou  there  as  many  more  might  see 
Shine  in  the  vast  Immensity ! 
And  then  as  far  again  should'st  fly 
Thou  wouldest  more  and  more  espy. 

FEBRUARY. 

Now  all  a  Loud  the  Winds  do  blow 
About  the  hoary  heaps  of  Snow, 
With  feather'd  Rain  the  ways  are  foul 
No  Birds  do  sing  Kxcept  the  Owl : 
But  every  Bird  has  chose  his  Mate 
The  joyful  Spring  to  Celebrate. 

MARCH. 

Cunkeechah  Netop  ?  what  News  you  speak  to  me  ? 
Muffy  good  news;  what?  you  no  Stommonee? 
By  by  come  Elwipes  much  as  me  can  wish 
Me  Tink  nuxt  Week  den  me  shan  heb  it  Bish 
Where  is  Tat  prace  you  speak  to  me  ?  Me  ashk  it 
Me  tink  some  Pokes  he  cann  his  Lame  Namaskitt. 

APRIL. 

When  first  the  Spring  Dissolves  the  Mountain  Snow, 
And  Western  Winds  upon  the  Waters  blow, 
When  Neptunes  fury  stops,  the  Winds  do  sleep 
And  only  Whisper  Musick  to  the  deep. 
Then  Smooth  Fac'd  Thetis  bids  you  hoist  your  Sails, 
And  plow  the  Briny  Seas  with  prosperous  Gales. 

MAY. 

Aurora's  Winged  Choristers  Prepare 
To  Chant  forth  Anthems  in  Harmonious  Air 
And  Mounting  Lark  Day's  Herald  gets  on  Wing 
And  bids  each  Bird  choose  out  their  bough  to  Sing : 
The  Daz'ling  Sun  sends  down  Porlific  beams, 
And  Rarifies  the  Earth  with  piercing  Gleams. 

JUNE. 

Hail,  high-pitch'd  Sol,  thy  Scorching  Aetna  turn 
To  gentle  heat,  and  let  thy  Rays  not  burn. 
But  }-et  I  say,  thou  Dumb  and  Senceless  thing 
Thou  must  obey  thy  Great  Creator  King. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1730.  67 

For  all  the  Stars  that  in  the  Heavens  shine 
Fulfill  some  deep  and  wonderfull  design. 

JULY. 

The  furious  winds  with  one  another  Scold 
And  Sulph'ry  Vapours  meet  with  Chilling  Cold. 
The  Clouds  do  Roar  and  from  their  breaches  throw 
Such  Thund'ring  Tumults  as  torment  below, 
And  Heavens  Artil'ry  horrid  Noises  make 
Wherewith  dull  Earth  and  Wand'ring  Rivers  shake. 

AUGUST. 

The  Heavenly  Globes  in  Liquid  Aether  Runs 
With  Rapid  Motion  round  the  Stedfast  Sun  ; 
The  smallest  Stars  that  quite  Surpass  our  Sight. 
To  other  Systems  may  be  Globes  of  Light 
Systems  Distinct  in  Order  do  imbrace 
The  Whole  Abyss  of  Extra  mundane  Space. 

A  Fair  Face  but  a  foul  Bargain. 

SEPTEMBER. 

WThen  Tender  Lambs  with  Wolves  delight  to  play 
Or  from  the  West  shall  spring  the  Break  of  Day : 
When  Rocks  forget  their  ponderous  weight  and  fly, 
Like  waving  Atoms  in  the  Empty  Skie : 
Then  shall  vain  Notions  by  Traditions  bred, 
Among  the  Vulgar  be  abolished. 

OCTOBER. 

Are  Comets  with  their  dreadfull  firey  Blaze 
Made  only  Objects  whereon  Men  might  Gaze? 
No,  they  from  World  to  World  are  always  Sent 
To  Warn  them  of  some  Sad  and  dire  Event. 
One  met  the  Earth  and  Drown'd  that  Generation 
The  same  may  cause  the  Gen'ral  Conflagration. 

Hate  not  the  man,  but  his  vices. 

NOVEMBER. 

Old  Winter's  coming  void  of  all  delight 

With  tremb'ling  steps  his  Head  is  bald  and  White 

His  Hair  with  Robes  of  Icicles  are  hung. 

His  Chatt'ring  Teeth  Confound  his  Useless  Tongue 

He  makes  the  Rich  to  Spend,  and  poor  to  Cry 

For  Want  of  that  which  would  their  Wants  Supply. 


68  ALMANACK  FOR  1730. 

DECEMBER. 

Sol  through  his  Twelve  Coelestial  Inns  has  Run 
And  Now  unto  Cold  Capricorn  is  come  : 
Where  in  that  Solstice  he  so  Pale  is  grown, 
As  if  aeham'd  his  Weakness  should  be  known  : 
But  in  Six  Months  to  us  he  will  return 
With  such  a  Heat  his  Rays  will  almost  burn. 


Concerning  the  Eclipses  this  year,  the  Author  would  observe, 
that  according  to  Authors  the  Eclipse  of  the  Moon  (Jan.  22) 
which  happens  in  Leo  the  2nd  Sign  of  the  fiery  Triplicity, 
threatens  more  Grudgings,  Repinings,  discord  and  hatred,  mur 
muring,  complaints  of  the  Common  People,  motions  of  Armies, 
Wars,  burning  of  Houses,  sharp  Fevers,  Pestilential  Diseases,  etc. 

And  as  for  the  Eclipse  of  the  Sun  on  the  3rd  of  July,  Mars 
casts  his  Malign  Rays  to  both  the  Luminaries,  which  portends 
much  Mischief  to  those  Places  and  Countries,  that  are  subject  to 
the  Sign  Eclipsed. 

Note.  In  the  last  preceding  Years,  the  Superiour  Planets 
have  been  within  benevolent  Rays,  but  in  the  three  succeeding 
Years  they  will  be  malevolently  Affected  and  near  the  ^Equinox, 
which  perhaps  may  affect  the  bigger  part  of  the  Earth,  with  War 
and  Tumults. 


KIND  READER. 

It  may  not  be  amiss  to  fill  this  Vacant  Page  with  the  follow 
ing  Lines  written  by  an  Accurate  hand  to  Mr.  H.  Coley,  on  his 
Clavis  Astrologiae  Elimata. 

When  the  Divine  Idaea's  first  unfurl'd, 

Themselves  to  raise  this  glorious  Frame  the  World, 

Almighty  Wisdom  by  a  Mistique  Tye, 

Spread  through  the  whole  a  secret  Sympathy ; 

Impregnating  Superiours  to  dispense, 

On  lower  Bodies  daily  Influence  ; 

Which  Train,  if  Causes  that  in  order  fall 

The  Wiser  Nature,  others  Fortune  call : 

And  whilst  Man  did  in  Innocence  remain, 

He  knew  ('tis  like)  each  Link  of  that  great  chain ; 

But  when  Sin  Blurr'd  his  Soul,  that  Light  was  Damp't 

Affected  Knowledge  made  him  Ignorant ; 


ALMANACK  FOR  1730.  69 

Heaven's  Language  then  no  longer  he  could  spell, 

But  rudely  guess  at  what  he  could  not  tell : 

Yet  though  Bclips'd,  his  Mind,  (not  quite  bereft) 

Had  still  some  scatter'd  Glimmering  Notions  left. 

As  Rallying  Troops  (after  an  Overthrow) 

By  Stratagems  seem  to  Attaque  their  Foe ; 

So  humane  kind  hopes  to  Retrieve  by  Art, 

That  Skill  from  which  they  did  so  fondly  part : 

On  plains  of  Shinar  where  enlarged  Skie 

Gluts  with  vast  Prospect  the  admiring  Eye. 

The  long  liv'd  Patriarchs  as  their  Flocks  they  Fed, 

Observ'd  the  wandering  Glories  Over-head. 

Trac'd  all  their  Laws  of  motion  and  from  thence 

By  sage  Experience  learn'd  their  Influence  : 

URANIA  then  was  chast,  and  known  to  be, 

A  hand-maid  fit  for  bles'd  Theology ; 

Until  a  Barbarous  Crew  had  Seiz'd  upon  her 

Whose  savage  Rapes  deflower'd  her  blooming  Honour ! 

Chaldaeau  Figments  then  debauch'd  her  Race, 

And  with  vile  paint  Sulli'd  her  lovely  Face  : 

Ignorance  called  her  Witch,  Malice  a  Cheat, 

And  every  Gypsey  did  usurp  her  Seat. 

But  still  with  generous  scorn  she  took  these  wrongs, 

And  left  just  Fate  to  scourge  their  Sawcy  Tongues. 


1730. — This  year  the  opening  verse  on  title  page  savors 
greatly  of  a  bias  toward  Astrology,  although  "glittering  spears,"  "armour 
bright,"  and  "  dead  and  wounded  "  did  not  largely  disturb  the  peace  of 
Europe  this  season. 

The  poetical  offerings  over  each  month  have  been  elaborated  from 
couplets  to  six-line  verses,  mostly  dedicated  to  the  extolment  of  the  starry 
firmament  and  its  glories,  and  with  mythologic  imagery  of  the  planets, 
their  courses  and  influences.  A  notable  exception  however  is  the  March 
selection  which  is  an  attempt  at  an  humorous  Indian  dialect  soliloquy. 
The  circumstance  covered  by  the  verse  may  be  freely  rendered  into  Eng 
lish,  thus :  ( The  aborigine  having  saluted  Netop  (Englishman)  with  an 
inquire  of  surprise,  continues :  What  news  you  speak  to  me  ?  mighty 
good  news ;  what  ?  don't  you  understand  me  ?  By-and-by  Alewives  (a  sort 
of  fish)  will  come,  as  much  as  I  could  wish.  I  think  next  week  then  I  shall 
have  them  sure.  Where  is  the  place,  you  ask  me  ?  I  answer,  I  think  some 
folks  call  its  name  Namasket  (river.) 

February  evinces  some  familiarity  with  Shakspeare.  Under  August 
appears  a  mild,  yet  pointed  allusion  to  the  social  evil,  and  in  September  he 


70  ALMANACK    FOR    1730. 

shoots  a  bolt  at  flying  folly.  Under  October  crops  out  the  direful  Astro 
logical  idea  of  the  baneful  influence  of  the  Comet's  presence,  and  even  the 
probable  destruction  of  the  world  by  similar  influence  is  foretold,  as  also 
is  the  Deluge  attributed  to  the  collision  of  this  terrestial  ball,  with  one  of 
those  erratic  heavenly  letters  of  marque. 

Altogether  the  monthly  verses  are  quite  interesting  as  well  as  pleasing, 
and  amply  make  amends  for  the  humorous  items  which  are  not  very 
plentiful  this  year  in  the  weather  column. 

In  his  chapter  on  the  Eclipses  he  again  quotes  the  Astrological  authorsr 
and  "what  they  say,"  and  concludes  his  Almanack  with  a  poem  dedicated 
to  Mr.  Henry  Coley,  the  pupil  and  successor  to  Mr.  William  I/illy,  the 
great  Astrologer  of  the  period  of  Charles  I,  the  Commonwealth,  and  the 
Restoration.  This  poem  is  quite  entertaining,  as  the  writer  laments  the 
decline  of  the  Astrologic  art  from  its  once  high  position  as  the  handmaid 
of  Theology. 

William  Lilly,  the  most  successful  of  these  charlatans  deserves  more 
than  a  passing  notice.  He  flourished  between  the  years  1602 — 1681 ;  born 
i  May,  1602;  died  9  June,  1681,  and  was  proficient  in  all  the  unscrupulous 
cunning,  adroitness,  and  plausibility,  which  go  to  make  up  the  successful 
quack  and  impostor.  When  Charles  I.  was  imprisoned  at  Carisbrooke 
Castle,  Lilly  was  consulted  for  the  honr  which  would  favor  his  escape.  He 
was  satirized  by  Butler  in  Hudibras,  as  Sidrophel. 

"  Do  not  our  great  reformers  use 
This  Sidrophel  to  forebode  news  ? 
To  write  of  victories  next  year, 
And  castles  taken  yet  i'  th'  air  ? 
Of  battles  fought  at  sea,  and  ships 
Sunk  two  years  hence  ?  the  last  eclipse  ? 
A  total  o'er  throw  given  the  King 
In  Cornwall,  horse  and  foot,  next  spring? 
And  has  he  not  point-blank  foretold 
Whats'e'er  the  close  committee  would? 
Made  Mars  and  Saturn  for  the  cause, 
The  Moon  for  fundamental  laws  ? 
The  Ram,  the  Bull,  the  Goat  declare 
Against  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  ? 
The  Scorpion  take  the  protestation, 
And  Bear  engage  for  reformation  ? 
Made  all  the  royal  stars  recant, 
Compound  and  take  the  covenant?" 

Lilly  was  the  author  of  almanacks  entitled  Merlini  Anglici  Ephctneris, 
and  Merlinus  Anglicus  Junior,  and  continued  their  publication  from 
1644  until  his  decease,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  his  student,  Henry  Coley, 
to  whom  the  poem  quoted  by  Dr.  Ames  was  dedicated. 


AIRMAN ACK   FOR    1730. 


Merlini  Jnglici  Ephemeris : 
OR, 

Aftrolo$icall  Predi&ions  for  the  Year,  1.6  yi. 
By  W I LLI A  M  L I L  L  Y,Student  in 


Dem  dabit  his  <ju»quf  finem. 


Printed  for  the  Ompiiny  of  Stationers,  and 
the  Ca&lc  in  Cornhllli 


Portrait  of 

WIUJAM  LILLY. 

Title  page  of  his  Almanack.     1652. 


72  ALMANACK  FOR  1731. 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1731 


BY  NATHANAKI/  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  and  Astronomy. 


BOSTON:   Printed  by  B.  Green  and  Sold  at  the  Booksellers  Shops,  1731, 


From  hence  you  carping  Momus  hence  be  gone, 
To  your  deserved  center  Acheron 
Keep  court  with  Pluto,  in  the  Stygian  Lake, 
Whose  sordid  Tongues  do  black  Aspersions  make 
Your  lot  &  portion  black  Tartarum  yields ; 
You  have  no  right  unto  th'  Elysian  fields, 
Whose  viperous  Tongues  abuse  the  Sons  of  Art, 
When  knowledge  they  to  th'  blear-eyed  World  impart. 


JANUARY. 

When  the  Almighty  to  Create  Essay'd 
Thousands  of  World's  were  out  of  Nothing  made  ; 
When  ancient  Night  its  spacious  Realms  resign'd, 
Then  Globes  of  Light  in  Fields  of  Azure  shin'd. 
Confusion  now  no  more  provokes  the  Fray, 
And  comely  Forms  in  decent  Order  play. 

FEBRUARY. 

Stupendous  Atheistical  Nonsense ! 

That  Atoms  floating  in  a  Space  Immense. 

Should  by  the  jumbling  hand  of  Chance  be  hurl'd 

Into  that  order  which  compos'd  the  World ! 

Or  if  the  Concave  of  the  vast  Expance, 

Was  by  the  senseless  Hand  of  giddy  Chance. 

There  will  be  Weather  this  Week  tho'  I  say  nothing  about  it. 

MARCH. 

Fill'd  up  with  Stars  and  glorious  Globes  of  Light 
So  beautiful  and  so  amazing  bright. 
What  could  direct  'em  in  their  beaten  way, 
That  none  do  from  their  ancient  Order  stray  ? 


ALMANACK  FOR  1731.  73 

Why,  there  must  be  one  Architect  above 

By  whom  the  various  Springs  of  Nature  move. 

APRIL. 

Who  all  the  vast  prodigious  Worlds  can  weild 
And  strength  compleat  to  labouring  Nature  yield, 
Almighty  Power  doth  over  all  preside. 
And  Providence  the  smallest  Atoms  guide, 
And  every  Atom  of  this  mighty  Frame, 
(By  him  Created)  out  of  Nothing  came. 

T?  Changes  Signs  so  Many  Changes  happen. 

MAY. 

And  to  behold  how  natural  Causes  move, 

Like  Engines  by  th'  Artificer  above, 

Must  help  our  stupid  Minds  and  make  us  see 

And  know  there's  one  Eternal  Deity, 

Omnipotent  and  most  amazing  bright 

And  doth  command  th'  imperial  Realms  of  Light. 

JUNE. 

Who  do  divine  incessant  Praises  pay 
While  on  the  Glories  of  his  Face  gaze  they, 
Inanimates  Instinctive  Honour  give, 
And  shame  the  World  who  in  Rebellion  live : 
The  Sun  and  Stars  obey  his  holy  Will 
Tho'  Men  on  Earth  are  Rebels  to  him  still. 

JULY. 

By  threatning  Stars  and  Prodigies  He  shows 

A  sinning  People  their  impending  Woes, 

Earthquakes  sometimes  the  trembling  Ground  do  tear 

And  blazing  Comets  rule  the  troubled  air. 

See  how  the  Morning  is  mimic'd  in  the  North 

By  strange  and  vap'rous  Lights  that  there  spring  forth. 

AUGUST. 

Which  makes  the  Stars  to  shine  with  paler  Beams, 
And  seem  to  tremble  at  such  Midnight  Streams 
Unusual  Lights  by  Night  adorn  the  Skies, 
And  the  cold  North  is  filled  with  Prodigies 
Unknown  the  Cause  and  tragical  Portents 
Of  this  strange  Harbinger  of  dire  Events. 


74  ALMANACK  FOR  1731. 

SEPTEMBER. 

But  this  we  know  that  universal  Doom, 

Which  wondrous  Prophecies  foretold  shall  come, 

Earthquakes  and  Wars  and  wondrous  Prodigies, 

Forebode  that  great  decisive  Morn  to  rise, 

When  Heav'ns  bright  Judge  in  op'ning  Skies  shall  show 

His  Grace  and  Justice  to  the  World  below. 

OCTOBER. 

The  Constellations  and  Superiour  Stars, 
Threaten  the  trembling  World  with  dreadful  Wars : 
Chronos  and  Jove  for  Mischief  are  designd 
Malignant  Stars  are  to  Malignants  join'd  : 
Sometimes  one  Spark  devouring  Flames  create, 
There's  Matter  lodg'd  for  fiery  bleeding  Fate. 

NOVEMBER. 

There's  some  I  know  that  presume  to  say, 
The  World  was  ne'er  forewarned  such  a  way, 
But  I  unto  such  "  fiery  Zealots  tell 

"  Astrology's  from  Heaven  not  from  Hell. 

"  Tis  no  Black  Art,  no  damned  Necromancy 
f     "  No  Witchcraft  neither,  as  some  please  to  Fancy. 

DECEMBER. 

"  For,  shallow  Brains  think  all  that's  hard  &  high, 

"  Unlawful,  or  impossibility." 
Bold  is  the  Wretch,  Blasphemous  is  the  Man 
Who  (Finite)  will  or  dare  attempt  to  scan 
The  Works  of  HIM  who  's  infinitely  Wise, 
And  those  he  cannot  Comprehend,  denies. 

ECUPSES  1731. 

Twice  shall  the  Moon  as  she  doth  cross  her  Node 
Eclipse  the  Sun  in  his  Ecliptick  Road ; 
And  twice  the  Disk  of  Earths  obscuring  shade, 
The  Borrow'd  Light  of  Luna  shall  invade. 


Strange  and  wonderful  have  been  the  prodigious  Effects  of 
Nature  of  L,ate  Years  in  the  production  of  terrible  Thunder 
&  Lightning,  violent  storms,  tremendous  Earthquakes,  great 
Eclipses  of  the  Luminaries,  notable  Configurations  of  the 


ALMANACK    FOR    1731.  75 

Planets,  and  strange  Phenomena  in  the  Heavens  :  The  Aurora 
Borealis  (or  Northern  Twilight)  is  very  unusual,  and  never  seen 
in  New  England  (as  I  can  learn)  'till  about  1 1  years  ago :  Tho' 
undoubtedly  this  Phenomenon  proceed  from  the  concatination 
of  causes.  For  hot  and  moist  Vapours,  Exhaled  from  the  Earth, 
and  Kindled  in  the  Air  by  Agitation,  according  to  their  motion 
may  cause  Strange  Appearances.  I  do  not  say  that  this  is  the 
true  cause  of  these  Northern  Lights,  but  that  they  are  caused 
by  some  such  way  must  be  granted :  nor  must  they  be  dis 
regarded  or  look'd  upon  as  ominous  of  neither  Good  nor  111, 
because  they  are  but  the  products  of  Nature  :  for  the  great  GOD  of 
Natue  forewarns  a  sinful  World  of  approaching  Calamities,  not 
only  by  Prophets,  Apostles  and  Teachers,  but  also  by  the 
Elements  and  Extraordinary  Signs  in  the  Heavens,  Earth  and 
Water.  There  seldom  or  never  happen'd  any  Revolution  of  King 
doms  &  States,  Sects  and  Seditions  in  the  Church,  Alterations  of 
Laws  and  Customs,  Wars,  Famine,  Deluges,  &c.  But  that  the 
Postures  of  the  Constellations,  preceding  their  Changes,  were 
very  remarkable.  I  doubt  not  but  the  Oppositions  of  the 
Superiours  Saturn  and  Jupiter  will  have  their  malign  Effects, 
especially  those  which  are  celebrated  in  Cardinal  and  Equinoc 
tial  Signs.  I  do  not  pretend  to  determine  the  Event  of  these 
things :  yet  doubtless  he  who  lives  a  few  years,  and  observes  the 
Mutations,  Alterations,  and  Vicissitudes  of  things,  and  Accidents 
of  Mundane  Affairs,  may  be  able  to  judge  from  his  own  experi 
ence,  whether  these  Phenomena  forebode  Good  or  111. 


OH  1731* — The  Astronomer  is  evidently  inspired  in  his  open 
ing  lines  by  the  perusal  of  a  stray  copy  of  the  Almanack  of  "  Poor  Robin, 
the  Knight  of  the  Burnt  Island,"  which  was  one  of  the  first  productions 
of  the  class  called  Comic  Almanacks,  and  which  mercilessly  ridiculed  the 
Astrologic  predictions  of  the  Astronomers.  Doctor  Ames  takes  up  his 
cudgel,  and  with  the  aid  of  Melpomene,  proceeds  to  castigate  the  offenders, 
consigning  them  to  the  "abode  of  the  lost  souls." 

The  verses  at  the  head  of  the  prognostications  for  the  month,  set  forth 
with  no  uncertain  sound,  his  firm  belief  in  the  Mosaic  account  of  the 
Creation.  The  lines  under  July  and  August  give  his  idea  of  the  Aurora 
Borealis,  and  again  he  reiterates  his  continued  belief  in  the  influence 
of  "  threatening  stars  and  prodigies "  upon  the  destinies  of  men,  and 


76  ALMANACK   FOR    1732. 

thoroughly  rivets  his  faith  in  the  concluding  lines  of  the  months  of 
November  and  December. 

The  four  lines  announcing  the  Eclipses  for  the  year,  are  ingeniously 
conceived,  and  thoroughly  cover  the  subject. 

This  year  there  is  a  total  absence  of  humorous  prognostications,  and 
wise  sayings,  from  their  usual  place  in  the  weather  column ;  the  whole 
attention  of  the  author  evidently  having  been  devoted  to  the  gentle  muse. 

He  closes  his  annual  production  with  a  characteristic  essay  upon  the 
remarkable  natural  occurrences  of  recent  years,  and  incorporates  therein 
also  his  theory  of  the  "  Northern  Twilight "  which  had  never  been  noted 
in  New  England  prior  to  the  year  1719.  He  again  alludes  to  the  fact  that 
great  changes  in  earthly  affairs  are  always  preceded  by  remarkable  celestial 
configurations,  and  while  not  willing  to  absolutely  forecast  the  future, 
wisely  recommends  that  mundane  happenings  be  strictly  observed,  that 
experience  may  teach  whether  precedent  Phenomena  may  not  have 
governed  the  ensuing  occurences. 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR     1732 


BY  NATHANAEI,  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  &  Astronomy. 


BOSTON:   Printed  by  B.  Green  and  Sold  at  the  Booksellers  Shops,  1732. 


Come  now,  O  Product  of  Elaborate  thought 
Which  many  a  silent  Hour  on  thee  has  wrought  \ 
Thou'rt  from  an  Embrio  to  perfection  brought :  t 
Go  forth  into  the  World,  for  some  shall  Prize  thee, 
Some  shall  set  light,  and  other  some  despise  thee ; 
But  mind  'em  not,  only  observe  this  Rule, 
Always  to  Love  the  Wise,  and  shun  the  Fool. 


INGENIOUS  READER. 

The  method  of  this  Almanack  is  not  alter'd  therefore  it  needs 
no  Explanation :  only  the  Verses  over  each  Monthly  Page  do 
not  properly  appertain  to  the  Months,  and  some  perhaps  may 


ALMANACK    FOR    1732.  77 

say,  not  to  the  Almanack  neither  :  But  I  hope  they  will  acknowl 
edge  that  the  consideration  of  the  Distances,  Places,  Motions, 
Center,  and  Magnetism  of  the  Heavenly  Bodies,  and  how 
inviolably  they  obey  the  Laws  of  some  Omniscient  Contriver, 
in  their  exact  Revolutions,  according  to  their  several  Periods,  is 
sufficient  to  lead  my  Thoughts  this  way  to  admire  the  Omniscient 
Mind:  whose  All-disposing  Providence  not  only  guides  the 
Rolling  Worlds,  as  they  Plough  the  Liquid  Aether,  but  also  the 
light  Dust  of  the  Ballance,  and  the  Thousands  of  Atoms  that 
wander  up  and  down  in  a  Sun-Beam,  which  are  all  under  his 
Cognizance. 

JANUARY. 

Not  Man  nor  Angel  was,  nor  laving  Soul, 

But  Chaos  wild  Reign'd  where  these  Heaven's  roll 

When  the  Omniscient  mind,  the  King  Supreme 

Laid  out  his  Work,  contriv'd  the  wonderous  Scheme 

Of  Excellence,  which  all  Creaton  shows  : 

HE  Glory,  Beauty,  Eminence  bestows. 

FEBRUARY. 

As  Pre-Existing  every  Second  Cause 

He  made  them  all  to  suit  His  Sacred  Laws, 

Whose  firm  Decrees,  bearing  Eternal  Date 

Enrolled  are  in  Folios  of  Fate 

Chain'd  to  His  Throne  these  Sacred  Volumes  lie 

Nor  Angel  dares  to  read,  nor  Saint  comes  nigh. 

More  News  &  Business  next  Month  than  this. 

MARCH. 

For  Life  and  Death  by  the  Eternal  Pen 

Are  there  Recorded,  and  the  Fates  ofMen ; 

Our  Thoughts  and  Words,  nay  not  one  single  Hair 

Upon  our  Heads  but  what  is  numb'rd  there, 

Fate  is  an  Agent,  with  first  Causes  made 

By  Springs  from  Heaven  moves  and  is  obey'd. 

False  Reports. 

APRIL. 

It  finds  a  way  to  enter  with  the  Breath 

And  Crouds  its  Force  into  all  things  on  Earth, 

It  operates  Incognito  on  all, 

Vast  Worlds  unknown,  nay  Brutes  &  Insects  small. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1732. 

Things  present  and  to  come  must  all  obey 
Each  Day  and  Hour  shews  its  immortal  sway. 

A  Wet  Coat  this  Court. 

MAY. 

It  dwells  above  in  Harmonies  alone 

And  moves  to  us  by  certain  Springs  unknown, 

Reveal'd  in  time  each  Day  and  Hour  unfolds 

What  GOD  alone  Eternally  beholds. 

If  this  is  Fate,  then  it  serves  GOD'S  Decrees, 

And  brings  to  pass  whatever  He  foresees. 

JUNE. 

For  by  His  wise  and  absolute  Decree 

All  Secondary  Causes  govern'd  be 

For  who's  Supreme  that  can  Decree  besides  ? 

Or  what  is  it  that  Providence  not  guides  ? 

A  Special  purpose  always  must  be  join'd 

With  Special  knowledge  in  th'  Omniscient  Mind. 

Sublata  Causa  Tollitur  Effectus. 

JULY. 

Which  is  from  possible  Mutation  free 

As  He  sees  now  He  saw  Eternally. 

If  Time  brings  forth  what  He  has  never  will'd 

Then  it  is  such  as  always  he  has  nill'd, 

And  He's  Restrain'd  if  nilling  cant  prevent 

And  so  no  GOD  if  not  Omnipotent. 

Take  her  at  her  Word  for  so  many  Matches  are  Retarded. 

AUGUST. 

The  Architect  Divine  Work'd  up  rude  Clay 
Which  void  of  Thought,  or  Sense  or  Reason  lay, 
Till  it  the  Breath  of  Life  from  GOD  receiv'd 
Then  Man  arose,  stood  up,  and  spake  and  breath'd. 
Almighty  Power  and  wonderous  Art  imploy'd 
To  call  Us  up  out  of  an  Empty  Void. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Not  of  ourselves,  but  by  the  Hand  Divine, 
Whose  Sacred  Word  declares  all  Souls  are  mine : 
My  Glory  I  propose  in  all  I've  made 
And  what  I  thus  propose  shall  be  obey'd ; 


ALMANACK  FOR  1732.  79 

Not  your's,  but  My  Prerogative  alone, 
To  Honour  or  Dishonour  what's  my  own. 

OCTOBER. 

But  O !  Alas !  was  Man  made  so  accurst 
His  Fate  so  hard  to  Sin  because  he  must? 
Will  GOD  condemn  the  Soul  to  endless  pain, 
For  doing  only  what  Himself  ordains  ? 
Sure  God  is  good  in  all  His  deep  designs, 
No  Attribute  with  greater  Lustre  shines. 

NOVEMBER. 

We  be  n't  constrain'd  to  Sin :  for  GOD'S  Decree, 
Don't  inconsist  with  Humane  Liberty, 
We  freely  have  our  choice  in  every  way. 
Yet  all  the  while  GOD'S  firm  Decrees  obey 
For  GOD  decreed  before  the  Worlds  were  made, 
CHRIST  JESUS  should  by  Judas  be  betray'd. 

DECEMBER. 

Deliver'd  up  to  Death,  for  he  design'd 
Thereby  to  bring  Redemption  to  Mankind, 
But  Judas  only  for  the  sake  of  Gold, 
Not  for  our  good,  his  Glorious  Master  sold. 
Thus  GOD  for  gracious  ends  ordain'd  that  Act, 
And  Judas  justly  Damned  for  the  Fact. 


ECLIPSES  1732. 

The  Eclipses  of  the  Luminaries  are  of  use  &  benefit  to  Man 
kind,  for  from  their  Observations  many  Truths  are  confirmed 
which  could  be  Demonstrated  by  no  other  Coelestial  Phaenomena. 
The  Longitude  of  Places,  the  Distances  of  the  Sun  and  Moon 
from  the  Earth,  and  their  Magnitudes,  the  Motion  of  the  Earth 
in  the  Zodiack,  and  that  the  Earth  is  on  every  Side  perfectly 
Round,  or  terminated  by  a  Globular  Figure  :  all  these  and  many 
other  things  may  be  demonstrated  by  Eclipses. 

The  Eclipse  of  the  Moon,  Nov.  2Oth  is  a  very  Remarkable 
Eclipse,  it  is  celebrated  in  10  degree  of  Gemini.  Mercury  is 
Lord  of  the  Ascendant  and  place  Eclipsed,  which  according  to 
Ptolomy  &  other  Learned  Authors  is  very  Portentous :  but  I 


8o  ALMANACK  FOR  1732. 

shall  leave  the  Effects  of  this  Eclipse  to  the  Conjectures  of  more 
able  Astrologers. 

There  likewise  happens  this  Year,  two  most  famous  Oppo 
sitions  of  Saturn  &  Jupiter  &  both  near  the  Equinox  ;  *  *  * 
many  notable  Configurations  also  attend  these  Oppositions, 
which  may  bring  some  Tragical  Scene  on  the  Stage  of  Action, 
and  the  subject  Matter  of  our  "  Weekly  News-Letters"  will  be, 
perhaps  (more  than  what  is  common)  of  the  Negotiations  of 
Kingdoms  and  Princes. 

I  shall  conclude  what  I  have  to  say  on  these  Oppositions 
with  the  words  of  the  ingenious  Mr.  John  Partridge^  in  his 
Almanack  for  London  1702,  on  the  conjunction  of  these  same 
Planets  in  the  sign  Capricornus  which  are  to  this  effect  "  From 
this  conjunction  I  do  (says  he)  Predict  a  War,  and  as  it  happens 
near  the  Equinox,  I  judge  it  will  be  Universal  &  will  spread 
(before  it  is  ended)  over  all  Europe,  and  also  in  some  parts  of 
America  ;  and  as  it  begins  with  a  conjunction  so  I  judge  it  will 
continue  some  Years  before  it  is  ended,  and  very  few  (if  any) 
Kingdoms  in  Europe  will  escape  the  fury  of  it  by  War." 

How  far  these  Predictions  of  his  are  fulfilled  is  evident  to 
every  one  that  has  not  forgot  the  Wars  in  the  Reign  of  Queen 
Anne  which  followed  this  conjunction.  Now  tho'  Saturn  is  near 

1John  Partridge,  b.  1644,  d.  1714;  a  shoemaker  by  trade,  acquired  some 
knowledge  of  Latin,  astronomy  and  astrology,  and  undertook  the  publica 
tion  of  an  almanack.  He  was  attacked  by  Swift  who  published  a  number 
of  satirical  and  humorous  pamphlets  against  the  shoemaker-astrologer. 
Swift  predicted  the  death  of  Partridge — "  having  consulted  the  star  of  his 
nativity,  I  find  he  will  infallibly  die  on  the  29th  of  March  next  (?  1708) 
about  eleven  at  night  of  a  raging  fever ;  therefore  I  advise  him  to  consider 
of  it,  and  settle  his  affairs  in  time."  After  this  date  had  transpired, 
Partridge  publicly  denied  the  predicted  catastrophe.  Swift  followed  with 
An  Elegy  on  the  Supposed  Death  of  Patridge  the  Almanack- Maker, 
followed  by 

THE  EPITAPH. 

"  Here,  five  foot  deep,  lies  on  his  back 
A  cobbler,  star-monger  and  quack, 
Who,  to  the  stars,  in  pure  good-will, 
Does  to  his  best  look  upward  still. 
Weep,  all  ye  customers,  that  use 
His  pills,  his  almanacks,  or  shoes ; 


ALMANACK  FOR  1732.  81 

the  same  degree  of  the  same  Sign  where  this  great  conjunction 
was  celebrated  in  the  Year  1702,  &  Jupiter  in  opposition  thereto  ; 
which  makes  this  opposition  very  remarkable;  yet  I  do  not 
pretend  to  know  that  it  will  have  the  same  Effect :  But  I  believe 
these  Oppositions  will  not  pass  without  some  Notable  Effect  to 
Europe  and  America,  if  not  to  all  the  World  in  general. 


The  Time  for  holding  Courts  in  South  Carolina  General 
Sessions,  3rd  Wednesday  in  March  &  October.  Common  Pleas, 
2nd  Tuesday  in  Feb.,  May,  Aug.  and  November. 


IVotes  OH  1732. — Dr.  Ames  this  year  salutes  his  production  with  a 
poetic  commendation,  and  dismisses  his  bantling  to  the  world  with  some 
very  sage  advice.  In  his  address  to  the  "Ingenious  Reader,"  he  again  extols 
the  sublimity  of  the  study  of  the  heavens,  and  magnifies  the  all  disposing 
Architect  of  the  Universe,  and  the  wrorks  of  his  hands.  He  apologizes  for 
the  perceptible  inappropriateness  of  the  verses  over  each  month,  as  not 
being  in  consonance  with  the  usual  quality  of  the  conventional  lines  thus 
applied  ;  but  the  modern  reader  may  find  therein  much  to  excite  his  curi 
osity.  The  ingenious  writer  has  embodied  therein  a  gentle  endorsement 
of  nearly  every  creed  adduced  from  the  fundamental  basis  of  the  Christian 

And  you  that  did  your  fortune  seek, 
Step  to  his  grave  but  once  a  week. 
This  earth  which  bears  his  body's  print, 
You'll  find  has  so  much  virtue  in't, 
That  I  durst  pawn  my  ears  't  will  tell 
Whate'er  concerns  you  full  as  well 
In  physique,  stolen  goods  or  love, 
As  he  himself  could  when  above." 

NOTE. — Partridge's  memory  is  preserved  in  Pope's  "  Rape  of  the  Lock." 
After  Belinda's  curl  had  been  appropriated,  the  poet  places  it  among  the 
constellations  thus : 

"  This  the  beaumonde  shall  from  the  Mall  survey, 
And  hail  with  music  its  propitious  ray ; 
This  the  blest  lover  shall  for  Venus  take, 
And  send  up  prayers  from  Rosamunda's  lake ; 
This  Partridge  soon  shall  view  in  cloudless  skies, 
When  next  he  looks  through  Galileo's  eyes ; 
And  hence  the  egregious  wizard  shall  foredoom 
The  fate  of  Louis  and  the  fall  of  Rome." 


82  ALMANACK    FOR    1732. 

faith,  and  at  a  period  when  matters  of  religion  were  so  generally  the  sub 
ject  of  debate  and  conversation,  it  certainly  was  prudent  in  the  author  of  a 
work  of  general  circulation,  like  the  Almanack,  either  to  ignore  the  subject 
entirely — which — possibly  might  not  have  been  wise — or  to  compose  a  sort 
of  olla  podrida  for  which  the  public  might "  pay  their  money  and  take  their 
choice." 

To  review  the  poem — the  Genesis  of  the  world  is  treated  from  the 
stand-point  of  the  old  dispensation  ;  then  the  muse  gently  slips  along  into 
the  discussion  of  the  "  Oraculum  or  Book  of  Fate,"  at  which  the  Fatalist 
may  solace  his  mind  with  his  peculiar  notions.  As  we  pass  along,  "Special 
Providences"  meet  with  their  endorsement  at  the  hands  of  the  poet,  and 
under  September  we  find  that  the  "  Omnipotent  personal  God  declares  his 
purpose  and  prerogative  to  Honour  or  Dishonour  what's  my  own." 

In  October,  the  Universalist  queries  whether  the  Soul  shall  be  con 
demned  to  endless  pain,  for  only  performing  the  work  ordained  by  the 
Superior  Being ;  and  over  the  succeeding  month,  Predestination  is  royally 
made  manifest,  it  having  been  "  decreed  before  the  Worlds  were  made," 
that  Jesus  "  should  by  Judas  be  betray'd,"  and  the  unfortunate  Judas  "justly 
damned "  for  the  act,  in  order  to  exhibit  the  Omnipotent  power  and 
influence. 

There  is  in  this  year's  Almanack  a  scarcity  of  humorous  remarks  in 
the  weather  column.  The  prediction  under  February — of  "  more  news  & 
business  "  for  next  month  goes  without  saying,  as  in  the  natural  order  of 
things  both  that  condition,  the  "  False  Reports  "  for  March,  and  the  "  wet 
coat "  for  April  court,  might  well  be  prognosticated  for  those  particular 
seasons. 

The  Latin  "  Haughty  causes  exalt  effects,"  is  a  sort  of  general  aphorism, 
while  the  advice  to  "take  her  at  her  Word"  is  appropriately  placed  in 
Cupid's  mouth. 

Some  very  practical  Astronomy  is  taught  under  the  head  of  "  Eclipses," 
and  again  the  tendency  toward  the  belief  in  Astrology  is  evinced  in  the 
author's  comments  on  the  portents  of  both  the  Eclipses  and  Planetary 
configurations  noted. 

No  particular  disturbance  politically  has  been  noted  about  this  period, 
as  affecting  either  colonies  or  mother  country,  yet  perhaps  the  "  News- 
Letter  " '  mentioned  may  have  contained  an  occasional  allusion  to  Conti 
nental  European  complications,  which  would  serve  to  verify  the  predictions. 

That  a  "  prophet  is  not  without  honor  save  in  his  own  country,"  is  veri 
fied  in  the  allusion  by  the  Doctor  to  the  "  ingenious  Mr.  John  Partridge  " 
the  Merlinus  Liberatus  of  London,  and  who  was  so  unmercifully  lampooned 
by  Dean  Swift.  Dr.  Ames  evidently  had  confidence  in  the  attainments  of 

1  The  Boston  News-Letter,  published  by  John  Campbell,  Postmaster, 
Boston. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1733.  83 

the  "  Cordwainer-Astronomer,  for  he  frequently  quotes  him  and  his  works 
in  a  very  favorable  manner. 

At  the  conclusion  is  a  notice  of  the  court  sessions  in  South  Carolina, 
which  verifies  the  wide-spread  popularity  of  the  Almanacks  of  Doctor 
Ames,  and  the  evident  pleasant  relations  which  then  existed  between  the 
Colonies — north  and  south. 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1733 


BY  NATHANIEL  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  and  Astronomy. 


BOSTON:   Printed  by  B.  Green  and  Sold  at  the  Booksellers  Shops,  1733. 


TIME  works  a  Change  on  all  material  Things 

Each  Year  new  Cause  of  Admiration  brings, 

Perhaps  you'll  wonder  e'er  this  Year  goes  out, 

Because  an  Egypt  Plague1  'twil  bring  about ; 

And  would  you  know  which  of  those  Plagues  'twill  be, 

Wait  but  a  while,  and  you  shall  really  see. 


JANUARY. 

WHAT  feeble  Accents  faulter  on  my  Tongue  ? 
When  I  but  think  how  ancient  Poets  Sung; 
Who  lavish'd  Art,  to  magnify  the  Fame 
Of  silly  gods  which  their  own  hands  did  Frame 
My  Muse  inspir'd  with  Nobler  Themes  defies 
Such  Old,  forsaken,  Threadbare,  Grecian  Lies. 

The  Winter's  milder  than  last  year, 
Your  Hay  will  last,  what  need  you  fear? 


1  Locust. 


84  ALMANACK  FOR  1733. 

FEBRUARY. 

ATTEMPT  ye  Singers  but  in  humble  Lays, 

With  Fear  and  Trembling  Sound  your  Maker's  Praise 

Enable  me  to  Celebrate  a  right, 

Creation,  and  the  Wonders  of  His  Might. 

O  !  Think  how  Loud  the  vast  Bmpyren  Rung ! 

When  all  the  bright  Angelic  Nature  Sung. 

MARCH. 

To  see  how  Thousands  of  New  Worlds  were  made, 
And  how  the  Basis  of  this  World  was  laid, 
How  Chaos  yielded  to  the  powerful  Word, 
And  moving  Spirit  of  the  Mighty  GOD, 
Who  Silenc'd  Discord,  and  establis'd  Peace ; 
The  Elements  Eternal  jangle  cease. 

Art  thou  back-bited? 
Rejoice,  if  guiltless, 
If  guilty,  amend. 

APRIL. 

LIKE  things  to  like  cohear,  all  Atonies  Bright 
Or  Luminous,  combin'd  in  one  great  Light 
Which  Rules  the  Day,  and  keeps  in  Exile  Night. 
With  an  Almighty  Arm  He  now  stretch'd  forth 
Upon  the  Empty  Place  the  Spacious  North 
The  Earth  self-ballanc'd  on  her  Center  hung, 
Into  the  Mighty  Seas  the  Waters  run. 

MAY. 

AND  left  the  smooth  and  level  Surface  dry, 

Some  part  of  which  aspir'd  to  Mountains  high, 

Whose  Concave  Heads  do  serve  to  feed  the  Springs, 

And  for  a  Womb  to  precious  hidden  things  : 

Some  Portion  into  humble  Vales  subside, 

And  Campaign  Plains  (where  Bloody  Fights  are  tri'd) 

JUNE. 

HE  Cloath'd  the  Fertile  Surface  o're  with  Vines 

With  Shady  Palms,  Great  Oakes,  and  Stately  Pines 

And  various  useful  Woods,  Balsamic  Shrubs, 

Grac'd  with  sweet  scented  Flowers  and  wholsome  Herbs, 

Effluvia  that  with  each  Flower  dwells 

Affects  the  sense  with  Oderiferous  Smells. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1733.  85 

JULY. 

THE  Eye  delighted  with  a  Wondrous  Scene, 
Of  Colors,  and  among  the  rest  the  Green 
That's  painted  on  the  Grass,  for  niter  Blew, 
And  Yellow  Sulphur,  casts  that  Pleasant  Hue, 
The  Fertile  Vales  with  Crystal  Streams  supply'd, 
Which  Cool  the  Air,  and  quench  the  Thirst  beside. 

Love  is  a  frantick  Frenzy, 

That  so  infects  the  minds  of  men 

that  under  this  taste  of  Nectar 

they  are  poisoned  with  the  Water  of  Styx. 

AUGUST. 

OF  Man  and  Beast :  whose  pearly  Drops  supply, 

The  wing'd  Musicians  that  inhabit  nigh, 

The  spacious  Seas  in  Equilibrio  Stand, 

Or  in  a  due  proportion  to  the  Land, 

For  lo  they  serve  for  many  uses  more 

Than  to  Convey  the  Ships  from  Shoar  to  Shoar 

SEPTEMBER. 

AND  from  the  Dark  and  Gloomy  Vaults  below 
The  Surface  of  the  Earth,  great  Riches  flow. 
The  Subterraneous  Streams  concrete  to  Mines 
Which  serve  in  deep  Medicinal  designs: 
His  Voice  the  Air  with  Harmony  inspires 
From  the  sweet  warbling  of  the  winged  Choirs. 

OCTOBER. 

THE  Scaley  Tribe  amidst  the  Liquid  Seas 

Nor  Stormes,  nor  driftings  fear,  they  Sail  with  ease 

O're  all  His  Works  that  Sublinary  be, 

He  cast  a  Saphire  Glittering  Canopy, 

Thunder  and  Lightning,  Rain  and  painted  Bow  ~) 

The  spangling  Stars,  nay  glaring  Comets  too 

Adorn  the  Ample  Theater  below.  ) 

€D  23  —  The  Jarring  Lovers  are  Reconciled. 

NOVEMBER. 

HE  made  (having  His  six  Days  Wonders  done) 
The  sum  of  all  His  Works  compriz'd  in  One, 
The  noble  Creature,  Man,  High  Priest  and  King 
Over  this  World,  and  every  Living  thing, 


86  ALMANACK  FOR  1733. 

And  brought  these  glorious  Scenes  before  His  eyes, 
Which  fil'd  his  Son,  with  joy  and  with  surprise. 

DECEMBER. 

BUT  heedless  Man  !  He  from  the  Hight  of  all 
Through  Satan's  Wiles  Received  a  fatal  fall : 
Vast  Throngs  of  Wondering  Angels  Hast  to  see, 
The  dire  Event  of  this  Catastrophe. 
Wonder  Augmented  still !  for  thro'  free  Grace 
He's  Raised  Sublime  above  his  former  Place. 


THAT  this  Earth  and  the  other  Worlds  that  dance  their 
destin'd  Ring  about  the  Sun,  (the  Center  of  our  System)  shall 
not  always  continue  in  a  State  of  Order  &  Regularity,  as  at 
present,  is  evident  not  only  from  the  Word  of  GOD,  but  also 
from  all  the  Phoenomena  of  Nature ;  which  as  with  one  Voice 
declare  the  great  Catastrophe  of  our  System ;  The  quantity  of 
Light  and  Heat  in  the  Sun  is  daily  diminishing  by  reason  of  its 
perpetually  emitting  Millions  of  Rays  that  never  return  to  it  any 
more.  This  Earth  on  which  we  live  by  reason  of  its  Eccentri 
city,  as  it  moves  Periodically  round  the  Sun,  approaches  nearer 
the  Sun  every  Year,  and  according  to  such  a  Motion,  the  Earth 
in  Time  would  be  joined  to  the  very  Body  of  that  stupendous 
Luminary.  Should  Time  continue,  universal  Nature  would 
gradually  degenerate  into  its  ancient  State  of  Chaos,  and  the 
whole  material  World  would  be  blended  into  one  promiscuous 
Mass.  But  these  things  could  not  be  accomplished  till  an 
inconceivable  number  of  Years  were  finished.  We  cant  in 
reason  think  that  this  World  will  continue  till  it  is  thus  worn 
out  with  Time ;  for  it  is  easy  to  conceive  how  this  Earth  and  all 
things  in  it,  may  be  burnt  up  by  the  near  approach  of  a  vast 
Comet,  as  it  comes  red  hot  from  the  Sun.  There  are  Twenty 
one  in  number  of  these  Comets,  and  as  they  pass  thro'  the 
Planetary  Regions  they  may  most  certainly  approach  to  the 
Planets  themselves,  both  in  their  Ascent  to  &  Descent  from  the 
Sun,  and  so  cause  Shocks,  Deluges  &  Conflagrations  in  these 
Worlds.  And  as  the  Planets  (of  which  this  Earth  is  one)  pass 
through  their  Atmospheres  they  lend  them  benign  or  noxious 
Vapour  according  to  the  Designs  of  Providence.  The  most 


ALMANACK   FOR    1734.  87 

eminent  and  remarkable  Comet  that  ever  appeared  to  the  World, 
is  that  which  appeared  to  us  Anno  1680,  whose  return  is  expected 
Anno  2255.  It  is  supposed  by  the  most  learned  Astronomers 
that  this  very  Comet  in  its  Aphelion  past  through  so  much  Cold 
&  Darkness,  that  its  Atmosphere  derived  a  vast  Trail  of  Vapours, 
and  meeting  with  this  Earth  at  the  beginning  of  Noah's  Flood 
was  the  Cause  of  the  same.  And  with  good  Reason  it  is  sup 
posed  that  this  Comet  being  heat  so  Hot  in  its  Pherihelion,  that 
in  its  Ascent  from  the  Sun  meeting  with  this  Earth  'twill  cause 
the  great  Conflagration.  Dr.  C.  Mather  [speaks  of  Sir  Is.  New 
ton's  computation  of  the  Heat  of  this  Comet  1680,  thus  "  Its 
Heat  in  its  Pherihelion  was  near  2,000  times  greater  than  that  of 
red  hot  Iron.  A  Globe  of  red  hot  iron  of  the  Dimensions  of  our 
Earth  (by  his  computation)  would  scarce  be  cool  in  50,000  Years. 
If  then  this  Comet  cooled  a  100  times  as  fast  as  red  hot  Iron,  yet 
since  his  heat  was  2,000  times  greater  than  that  of  this  Earth  he 
will  not  be  cool  in  a  Million  of  Years."  The  Nodes  of  this 
Comet  being  so  nigh  the  Annual  Orb  of  this  Earth  that  it  may 
approach  even  to  the  Earth  itself.  What  Horror  &  Consterna 
tion  will  this  wicked  World  then  be  in,  when  they  shall  behold 
this  vast  Comet  like  a  baneful  torch,  blaze  &  roll  along  the 
unmeasurable  Aether,  bending  its  course  directly  to  this  Earth 
with  a  Commission  from  Heaven  to  burn  it  up ! 


on  1733. — In  his  title-page  verses,  Dr.  Ames  ventures  to 
predict  the  advent  of  one  of  the  scourges  of  Egypt,  viz.:  the  Locust,  and 
perhaps  the  "seventeen  year"  variety,  of  which  occasionally  we  hear  in 
these  days. 

He  opens  the  monthly  verses  with  a  savage  onslaught  upon  the  capital 
stock  of  ancient  Grecian  mythology,  then  easily  subsides  into  the  muse's 
arms,  while  she  gently  hums  in  his  ears  the  time-honored,  threadbare 
subject  of  the  Creation,  commencing  with  the  elaboration  of  order  out 
of  chaos,  and  winding  up  with  the  usual  menu  of  Soup  and  Fish,  Flesh 
and  Vegetables.  The  September  verses  being  especially  devoted  to  Carlsbad, 
Blue  Lick,  Hunyadi  and  other  medicinal  moisture ;  then  follows  October 
with  the  fireworks  exhibition,  and  the  grand  finale  is  reached  when  the 
standing  candidate,  Man,  is  introduced,  to  anticipate  the  fall  of  Satan 
in  the  combat  with  St.  Michael,  by  executing  a  saltatory  movement  from 
Paradise,  ribs  and  all,  much  to  the  personal  discomfort  of  the  writer  and 
many  of  his  associates  in  this  Vale  of  Tears. 


88  ALMANACK  FOR  1734. 

The  interspersed  humor  in  the  weather  column  is  not  very  plenty  in 
this  year's  almanack ;  a  little  jingle  concerning  hay  in  January,  a  new 
reading  concerning  slander  (in  March)  is  neatly  put,  and  a  very  pessimistic 
view  of  the  tender  passion  is  inserted  under  July  this  year.  This  latter  is 
the  more  remarkable,  from  the  fact  that  the  Doctor  was  evidently  about 
this  time  preparing  himself  for  the  fatal  plunge  into  matrimony  with  Miss 
'  Mary  Fisher,  and  whom  he  married  shortly  after. 

The  Bssay  at  the  close  of  this  year's  almanack  possesses  much  interest, 
as  the  author  foretells  the  future  destruction  of  our  Solar  System.  He 
gives  cogent  reasons  why  the  Sun  should  eventually  cease  to  warm  us,  the 
order  of  all  things  cease,  and  "  universal  nature  degenerate  into  Chaos ;" 
or,  perhaps,  this  terrestrial  ball  collide  with  the  erratic  Comet,  and  be 
toasted  into  nothingness  at  once.  The  comet  of  1680  which  will  again 
meet  us  a  few  years  hence, — in  2255 — is  the  same  agent  who  did  Noah's 
business  for  him,  and  closed  up  all  commercial  enterprises  by  the  flood  ; 
and  which  will,  (according  to  the  Doctor  and  his  quoted  authorities)  cause 
the  final  conflagration  in  the  year  mentioned.  The  Underwriters  will 
hardly  be  expected  to  continue  risks  after  2254. 

The  quotation  from  Sir  Isaac  Newton  made  by  Dr.  Cotton  Mather  will 
be  found  pleasant  winter  reading  in  this  connection. 

I  should  say  with  Dr.  Ames  in  the  conclusion  to  his  essay,  that  the  final 
round-up  would  be  a  very  busy  season,  and  quite  interesting  to  a  local 
reporter  who  might  be  sufficiently  collected  to  appreciate  it. 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1734. 


BY  NATHANIEL  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  and  Astronomy. 


BOSTON:  Printed  for  the  Booksellers  and  Sold  at  their  Shops,  1734. 


I  use  no  Charms,  nor  filthy  Conjuration 
But  sublime  Geometric  Demonstration  ; 
But  Art  its  'self's  a  Mystery  to  Fools. 
That  are  devoid  of  great  Mechanic  Rules 
Numbers  can  reach  the  bounds  of  Matter  quite, 
And  comprehend  all  Things  but  Infinite. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1734. 


89 


Of  the  EC  LIP  S  E  Sttts  Tear  1734- 
Here  will  be  but  two  Eclipfes  this  Year3  and  both 
>jf  the  Sun. 

I.    The  Firft  will  b<?  on   tbc   tad   Day  of  April 

about  Sun-Rife,  but  the  Mooncs  Parallax  will  render  it 
ahnoft  over  before  that  Time. 

H,    The  Second  will  be   on   the   ifth    of  Offober 
about  half  an  Hour  paft  one  of  the  Clock  in  the  After- 
noonj  Scarce  viQblc  to  us. 


The  Anatomy  of  Man's  Body,  and  ^hat 
part  thereof  is -reprefented  by  the  i  a  Signs 
of  the  ZodiacL 


V  The  Head  and  F«oe, 


TL 

Arms  and 
shoulders 


Tie    Fctt. 


:oldeRNumbet 
)yclc  of  the  Sun 


No tes  of  this  Tear, 

£P*a 

Dorninic»l  Lctt-et 


The  Planet  ^entts  is  Occidonta}  or  Evening  Star 
till  the >3<3  efWlfurtf*,  thence  Oriental  or  ? 

.ning  Star  co  the  E«d  of  the  Year* 


NOTE. — This  is  the  last  appearance  of  the  "  Anatomy "  in  Ames's 
Almanack.  Some  improvement  may  be  noted  in  the  features  both  of 
the  household  god,  and  early  wood  engraving  in  New  England. 


9O  ALMANACK  FOR  1734. 

JANUARY. 

On  Eden's  flowery  bank  a  clod  of  Earth 
Neglected  lay  till  GOD'S  Almighty  Breath 
Gave  Light  and  Beauty  to  the  passive  Mould, 
Whose  Reason  pee'd  while  yet  the  mass  was  Cold 
And  nervous  juyce  gave  vigour  to  his  Joynts, 
To  Act  and  Do  whate'er  his  Will  appoints. 

FEBRUARY. 

ADAM  arise !   a  heavenly  Vision  said ; 
Go  dress  yon  Charming  Garden  which  I've  made 
For  thy  most  happy  and  delightful  Seat. 
Of  every  Tree  thereof  most  freely  eat, 
Except  the  Tree  amidst  the  rest  which  brings 
The  knowledge  of  all  good  and  Evil  Things 
(That  is  Good  lost  and  Evil  got  thereby) 
Eat  not  of  that  least  ye  most  surely  Die. 

MARCH. 

The  Deity  withdrew  from  human  Sight 

And  scarce  the  Sun  had  once  refresh'd  with  Light 

All  Quarters  of  the  new  made  Rolling  Ball, 

But  Man  (deceiv'd)  receiv'd  his  fatal  Fall. 

And  vilely  Eat  the  sacred  Fruit  forbidden 

But  nothing  from  GOD'S  flaming  Eye  is  hidden. 

APRIL. 

In  Evenings  cool  when  humid  Vapours  Rise 
And  Sols  fair  Light  forsook  the  Western  Skies 
GOD'S  awful  Voice  was  in  the  Garden  heard 
With  shame  abash'd  the  guilty  Rebel  fear'd 
The  dreadful  Voice  and  hid  among  the  Trees 
Wounded  with  Guilt,  a  virulent  Disease. 

MAY. 

No  Balm  he  had  to  heal  (a)  mortal  wound 
No  shelter  for  his  guilty  Conscience  found, 
All  things  conspir'd  to  make  his  ruin  sure. 
Oh  !  how  could  he  the  Face  of  GOD  endure ! 
Whose  Voice  the  Air  with  Comminations  broke, 
A  Curse  pronounced,  and  Thundered  as  he  spoke. 

JUNE. 

All  nature  groan'd,  the  Sun  his  Lustre  shrowds 
In  thick'ning  Storms,  in  Tempests,  and  in  Clouds. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1734.  91 

Th'  affrightened  Zodiack  the  Aequator  crost 

Sad  Signs  of  Wo  appear'd  that  all  was  lost 

Old  CHAOS  who  was  dead,  curst  Sin  revives 

Silenc'd  CONFUSION  now  with  Fury  strives 

DEATH,  smelling  Food,  broke  thro'  the  Gates  of  Hell, 

To  Eat  the  world  where  he  is  come  to  dwell. 

JULY. 

JUSTICE  his  Sword  of  Cherubims  was  drawn, 
No  Ransom  yet  appear'd — nothing  to  pawn 
To  save  Man's  Soul  from  GOD'S  revengeful  Stroke 
Till  mov'd  by  Love  Immense  the  Father  spoke. 
(And  speaking  he  made  known  what  lay  concealed 
From  Endless  Ages  not  till  now  reveal'd.) 

AUGUST. 

O,  Son  !  thou  brightness  of  my  Glory  see 
What  Man  has  got  by  his  Apostisy. 
He  has  my  Hatred  and  is  pinioned  fast 
To  horrid  Flames  that  Ever !  Ever !  Last, 
But  if  his  Ransom  be  Atchiev'd  by  Thee, 
Thereby  great  Glory  shall  derive  to  me. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Now  spake  the  Son :  (and  stepping  from  his  Throne) 

I  seek  thy  Glory  Father  as  my  own. 

These  Robes  of  Light,  in  which  I  am  arrayed 

I'll  leave  with  Thee,  and  go  and  be  betrayed, 

And  Crucified  and  Die  for  Sinner's  sake. 

Their  Flesh  and  Blood  upon  Me  I  will  take 

Then  let  thy  Wrath  and  Vengeance  light  on  me 

I'll  bare  the  Curse  to  set  the  Sinner  free. 

OCTOBER. 

With  Pity  mov'd  (as  Parents  to  a  Child) 

Thus  answered  the  gracious  Father  mild, 

Thou  dwellst  with  Me  in  Endless  Realms  of  Light 

Immensely  great,  (and)  ineffably  Bright, 

Thrones  and  Dominions  unto  Thee  are  given, 

All  Power  on  Earth  and  all  the  Keys  of  Heaven. 

NOVEMBER. 

All  knees  shall  bow  at  thy  subjecting  nod 
And  every  Tongue  confess  thee  to  be  GOD. 


92  ALMANACK   FOR    1734. 

Triumphant  Thou  th'  infernal  powers  annoy, 
To  conquer  Hell,  and  Death  it  self  Destroy, 
Thy  Sacred  Blood's  of  Value  Infinite, 
It  is  enough  to  clear   the  Sinner  quite. 

DECEMBER. 

Omnipotence  commanding  every  Peer 
In  Heaven's  Court  attentive  round  to  hear 
The  Covenant  proclaim'd  and  Heaven  Rung 
Hosanna !  to  their  King,  all  Angels  sung 
And  Peace  to  man  on  Barth  shall  henceforth  be, 
Here's  Love  Immense !  Diffus'd  in  high  Degree. 


( In  this  Almanack  is  given  "  The  Time  for  holding  Courts  in  South 
Carolina,"  which  is  convincing  proof  that  an  entente  cordiale  existed  at 
that  time  between  the  colonies  of  the  Massachusetts  and  South  Carolina. 
An  hundred  years  later  however,  it  was  to  be  a  matter  of  the  supremest 
indifference  to  either  Carolinian  or  Massachutensian,  whether  the  Courts 
sat  at  all,  or  whether  justice  was  granted  each  to  the  other,  in  either 
State.  Ed.) 

THE  Copernican  Hypothesis,  namely  that  the  Sun  is  the  Cen 
ter  of  our  system,  and  that  all  the  Planets  (of  which  the  Earth  is 
one)  move  round  him  in  their  several  Orbits,  at  different  Periods 
of  time ;  and  that  Day  and  Night,  the  various  Seasons  of  the 
Year,  and  the  seeming  motion  of  the  whole  Heavens,  is  caused 
by  the  rotation  of  the  Earth  on  its  own  Axis  :  is  now  by  infalli 
ble  methods  of  Reasoning  from  Geometrical  Principles  render' d 
indisputable,  and  brought  even  to  a  Demonstration ;  every 
Objection  against  it  has  been  fully  answered,  and  no  Man  of 
Sense  pretends  to  dispute  it.  Nevertheless  these  things  are 
Examined  by  general  Mathematical  Principles  which  are  far 
above  the  Capacity  of  the  Generality  of  Men :  who  only  seeing 
these  conclusions  without  knowing  anything  of  the  Methods  by 
which  they  are  Drawn,  look  upon  the  whole  as  meer  Conjecture, 
repugnant  to  Truth  and  the  Testimony  of  our  Senses.  In  An 
swer  to  the  Vulgar  Objections,  I  shall  endeavor  to  prove,  ist, 
that  the  Sun's  standing  still  (as  'tis  called)  and  the  Earth's  mov 
ing,  is  not  Repugnant  to  the  sacred  Scriptures :  and  2dly  that 
the  bare  Testimony  of  our  Senses  is  not  sufficient  to  inform  us 
of  the  Truth  of  this  Matter. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1734.  93 

First.  It  is  not  Repugnant  to  Sacred  Scriptures  ;  for  they  say 
nothing,  Doctrinally  about  it.  It  is  not  a  Matter  of  Faith  or 
Practice;  the  Knowledge  of  which  is  not  necessary  to  Salvation, 
and  therefore  not  to  be  determined  by  the  Sacred  Writings.  What 
do  the  Scriptures  Principally  teach  ?  not  what  we  are  to  believe 
concerning  the  Copernican  System.  The  Anti  Copernicans  sup 
pose,  that  this  Dispute  is  decided  by  Joshua  (chap.  lo.ver.  12)  who 
said  in  the  sight  of  Israel  "  Sun,  stand  thou  still  upon  Gideon,  and 
thou  Moon  in  the  Valley  of  Ajalon"  Here,  because  it  is  said,  Sun 
stand  thou  still:  they  insist  on  the  Letter  itself,  and  argue  that 
the  Sun  did  move,  because  Joshua  had  it  stand  still :  Now  since 
they  are  so  for  the  Letter  where  it  suits  them,  let  'em  take  the 
whole  Sentence  literally  and  wre  shall  see  if  there  be  not  any 
need  of  a  Figure  ;  for  if  the  Sun  had  obey'd  the  very  words 
of  Joshua  in  a  literal  Sense,  it  would  have  scorched  this  Earth 
to  a  cinder  in  the  twinkling  of  an  Eye;  for  he  had  it  stand 
upon  Gibeon,  and  not  over  it. 

Hence  it  is  plain  that  this  is  a  figurative  Expression,  spoken 
according  to  the  modern  Acception.  The  Sun  appears  to  our 
Eye  to  move  daily  and  continually,  and  Joshua1  s  bidding  of  it 
stand  still,  does  not  prove  whether  such  an  appearance  be  caused 
by  the  Rotation  of  the  Earth  or  no.  We  are  here  left  freely  to 
the  Dictates  of  Humane  Reason,  and  to  suppose  this  Miracle 
was  caused  by  the  cessation  of  the  Diurnal  Rotation  of  Earth, 
which  was  inverted  in  the  miraculous  Retrogradation  of  the 
shade  of  the  Dial  of  Ahaz.  These  Texts  that  speak  of  the  Sun's 
Running,  Rising  and  Setting,  &c.,  make  nothing  against  this 
Hypothesis,  they  being  Expressions  adapted  to  our  Capacities  ; 
a  way  of  speaking  frequent  in  Scripture,  and  proper  in  common 
Discourse. 

2.  The  bare  Testimony  of  our  Senses  is  not  sufficient  to 
to  inform  us  of  the  Truth  of  this  matter.  The  Sun  Moon  and 
Stars  are  at  such  a  vast  Distance,  that  our  Senses  without  the 
Assistance  of  Reason,  give  us  no  true  Notion  about  them.  To 
the  naked  Eye,  the  ^Ether  appears  like  a  solid  Arch,  the  Stars 
like  the  Heads  of  brass  Nails,  the  Sun  *  *  *  about  as  big  as 
a  Cheese,  but  our  Reason  informs  us  better.  Not  only  the  Sun 
but  all  the  Stars  (at  immense  and  unequal  Distances),  and  those 
that  are  never  seen  but  by  the  help  of  Glasses,  vastly  Superior 


94  ALMANACK  FOR  1734. 

to  our  Barth  for  Magnitude,  yet  seem  to  move  around  it  in  24 
Hours,  but  is  it  not  more  agreeable  to  that  direct  and  straight 
Method  that  Nature  takes  in  all  her  operations  to  suppose,  That 
the  Karth  turns  round  on  its  own  Axis  in  24  Hours,  which  gives 
the  same  Appearance  as  if  the  Heavens  were  hurried  Round  the 
Earth. 

Tho'  all  things  of  Earth  are  changing  their  absolute  Space 
every  Moment,  yet  they  keep  their  same  relative  space,  and  are 
in  a  State  of  Rest  in  a  relative  Sense,  therefore  it  is  impossible 
that  the  Earth  should  sensibly  appear  to  the  Eye  to  move,  but  by 
comparing  of  it  with  something  that  is  at  Rest,  which  can't  be 
anything  upon  the  Earth  or  nigh  it,  (as  the  Clouds  and  Vapors, 
&c.)  for  they  all  move  uniformly  with  it ;  but  the  Heavens  and 
the  Stars  are  fixt,  and  the  rolling  of  the  Earth  East,  brings  the 
Heavens  West,  as  a  Ship  under  Sail  makes  the  Land  seem  to 
move  the  contrary  way  from  its  own  Motion. 

'  Tis  impossible  we  should  feel  the  Earth  move,  because  the 
Air,  (that  circumambient  Fluid)  encompassing  the  whole  Globe, 
encompasses  our  Bodies  also,  and  moves  as  the  Earth  does  which 
render  its  motion  imperceptible  to  the  sense  of  feeling. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR,  1734. 

JANUARY. 

Now  if  the  Swamps  should  catch  on  lire 
They'd  burn  the  Snow  and  all  the  mire. 

FEBRUARY. 

Let  men  Obey  the  L/aws  and  Women  their  Husbands, 

MAY. 
Rulers  are  men  before  GOD  and  Gods  before  men. 

JUNE. 
The  Flea  Catchers  are  in  great  hast. 

JULY. 

Rich  men  without  Wisdom  and  learning  are  called 
Sheep  with  Golden  Fleeces. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1734.  95 

AUGUST. 

Old  Saturn  is  got  so  sullen,  he  will  go  no  further  forwards. 

Where  Silly  Quacks  are  most  respected, 
There  honest  Doctors  are  neglected. 

SEPTEMBER. 
Ignorance  has  the  most  confidence. 

OCTOBER. 

It  is  better  to  have  a  man  without  money  than 
money  without  a  man. 

NOVEMBER. 

Bravery  in  apparel  is  nothing  worth  if  the 
mind  be  miserable. 


Xotes  on  1734. — A  declaration  of  Arithmetical  and  Geometrical 
principles  occupies  the  Astronomer's  mind  this  year,  and  he  indites  the 
same  upon  the  title  page  of  this  annual  production,  extolling  the  science 
and  the  province  of  numbers. 

For  the  theme  of  the  monthly  verses,  once  more  the  Mosaic  theory  of 
the  Creation  is  put  under  contribution ;  the  Garden  of  Eden  and  the  con 
duct  of  the  two  wayward  tenants,  constitute  the  topical  thought  in  addition 
to  the  central  figure,  the  Serpent,  and  the  accessorial  fruit. 

The  quaintness  of  the  lines  viewed  through  the  glasses  of  modern 
thought,  creates  much  interest  in  the  mind  of  the  reader  of  to-day,  and 
particularly  the  "  break  "  from  the  Mosaic  account  to  the  new  dispensation, 
and  the  conversation  as  between  the  Father  and  the  Son  in  reference  to 
the  proposed  sacrifice  on  Calvary's  mount. 

Under  the  essay  head  may  be  read  with  enjoyment,  the  Doctor's  theory 
concerning  Joshua's  command  to  the  Sun  and  Moon,  and  what  would  have 
happened  had  the  order  been  possible  of  literal  fulfillment. 

The  interlined  humor  and  wisdom  is  rather  more  plenty  than  in 
previous  years,  and  the  wise  saws  are  pleasantly  remodeled.  Occasionally 
the  "  regular  "  physician  lets  drive  at  the  quacks,  much  as  the  modern 
Galen  berates  his  non-collegiate  rival. 


96  ALMANACK    FOR    1735- 

THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1735 


BY  NATHANIEL  AMES,  Jun. 


Student  in  Physick  &  Astronomy. 

BOSTON  in  New  England : 
Printed  for  the  Booksellers,  and  Sold  at  their  Shops,  1735. 


The  Heighth  &  Depth,  the  Length  &  Breadth 

Of  the  Corporeal  Frame, 
What  Thought  can  Reach,  or  who  can  teach, 

By  Numbers  that  have  Name. 
When  we  survey  these  Azure  Fields  above, 
We  find  a  Space  Eternally  to  Rove. 


JANUARY. 

Tis  Cold  my  Friends :  The  dull  and  tedious  Nights 

Old  Batchellors  and  Widowers  invites 

To  Marry,  now  in  hast — Women  be 

Fram'd  with  the  same  Parts  of  the  Mind  as  we, 

They  are  the  best  of  Goods  or  worst  of  Evils, 

Resembling  bright  Seraphims  or 

FEBRUARY. 

As  youthful  Lovers  wish  those  Hours  away, 
That  are  between  their  Mistresses  and  they, 
So  many  wish  for  the  Auspicious  Spring, 
Whose  smiling  Birth  shall  many  Blessings  bring, 
When  Nature's  Face  by  Sol  shall  be  renewed 
And  Boreas's  frigid  blast  shall  be  subdued. 

MARCH. 

The  Winged  Travellers,1  that  soar  elate 
With  Pleasure  gliding  through  the  liquid  Air ; 
Guided  by  Instinct  or  some  secret  Fate 
Unto  their  Northern  Rendezvous  Repair. 

1Wild-Geese. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1735.  97 

Their  Captain  (foremost)  leads  the  Feather'd  throng, 
And  knows  what  Ports  to  light  at  all  along. 

APRIL. 

Now  Auster's  Breath  dissolves  the  Winters  Snow 
Which  on  the  barren  Hills  so  long  has  lain, 
Which  makes  the  Silver  murmering  Riv'lets  flow, 
And  Fertilizes  every  Sunny  Plain. 
The  Plants  sprought  forth,  the  Grass  again  is  green 
The  Fields  will  quickly  yield  a  pleasant  scene. 

MAY. 

Arcadian  Muses  now  inspire  the  Swains, 

With  Songs  of  Love  while  on  the  grassy  Plains, 

Their  Sheep  and  Goats  do  graze,  and  wanton  Lambs 

And  Kids,  run  Frisking  round  their  bleating  Dams. 

The  Fields  (like  the  Elyzian  Fields  above) 

Are  fill'd  with  Harmony,  with  Mirth  and  Love. 

JUNE. 

Those  abject  Men  whose  greatest  Talent  lies 

In  prying  into  Others  Qualities, 

Who  strive  their  neighbours  Vertues  to  conceal, 

And  magnify  their  Faults  with  Art  and  Skill, 

Are  like  the  Crow  and  other  Birds  of  prey, 

Who  search  out  Moorish  Ground  where  Carrions  lay. 

JULY. 

ORION1  King,  who  in  the  Winter  Reigns 
And  binds  the  barren  Earth  with  frosty  Chains, 
Brightest  of  all  the  Train  that  Set  and  Rise 
With  our  bright  Prince  of  Day,  ascends  the  Skies, 
So  Drunk  with  Heat  their  Stomachs  overflow, 
And  vomit  Lightnings  round  the  World  below. 

AUGUST. 

Those  Magazines  where  Thunder-Makers  dwell, 

Under  the  Ground,  in  Nature's  private  Cell, 

Sometimes  takes  Fire,  and  Kindle  into  Flame 

Which  rends  huge  Caves,  and  arched  Vaults  in  twain 

All  things  give  way  to  the  Expansion  great, 

Which  makes  the  trembling  Earth's  Foundations  shake. 

1  The  great  Dog  Star  rises  with  the  Sun  which  makes  DOG-DAYS. 


98  ALMANACK  FOR  1735. 

SEPTEMBER. 

The  Sun  grows  careful  of  his  lavish'd  Heat 
And  to  the  Southern  Clime  does  now  Retreat 
Under  the  Earth,  lengthening  the  nightly  shade, 
Which  makes  the  Summer's  verdant  Beauty  fade. 
Autumnal  Insects  with  a  mournful  Crake, 
Do  chippering  strive  to  Sing,  but  Discord  make. 

OCTOBER. 

Immortal  Scandals  fly  on  Eagle's  Wings, 
Whilst  vertuous  Actions  die  and  scarce  are  Nam'd 
Men  that  have  done  most  noble,  worthy  Things 
For  one  miss  deed  perpetually  are  Blam'd 
Ignoble  Souls  would  Spit  their  poisonous  Gall, 
Thinking  to  Raise  themselves  by  other's  Fall. 

NOVEMBER. 

When  Man's  grown  Ripe  he  presently  decays, 
All  things  to  fluctuate  and  nothing  stays. 
Time  alters  all,  this  present  Year's  grown  Old, 
And  Winter  threatens  us  with  pinching  Cold : 
Our  Comfort's  past  will  but  increase  our  Sorrow 
If  we  are  unprovided  for  To-morrow. 

DECEMBER. 

Dame  Tellus  lies  bereav'd  of  all  her  Charms, 
Coldly  Embrac'd  in  WINTER'S  icy  Armes. 
Bound  fast  with  frosty  Chains,  cover'd  in  Snow 
Expos'd  to  all  tempestuous  Winds  that  Blow : 
But  Sol  shall  come  and  Re-ascend  his  Throne 
And  make  his  Power  to  cruel  Boreas  known. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR,  1735. 

JANUARY. 

Kind  Reader,  now  perhaps  you  may 
Have  Weather  fit  to  Spend  your  Hay. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  falling  Snow  lights  on  the  Ground 
Which  makes  the  Earth  look  White  all  round 
Saturn  &  Mars  make  bloody  Noses  when  they  meet, 
They  are  such  111  natur'd  Fellows. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1735.  99 

MARCH. 

Just  wak'd  from  Sleep 

The  minute  Frogs  begin  to  peep. 

At  this  Time  of  the  Year  Namasket  River  is  a  Market  Place. 

APRIL. 

Poland  for  Two  Kings 
in  Blood  are  soaking 
and  are  as  bad  on't 
as  if  they'd  No  King. 


Three  Things  breed  Jealousy. 
A  mighty  State,  a  rich  Treasure 
and  a  fair  Wife. 

JUNE. 
He  that  is  an  Enemy  to  Beauty,  is  Foe  to  Nature. 

JULY. 

Lyons  are  known  by  their  Claws, 
Cocks  by  their  Combs,  and  Envious  Men 
by  their  manners. 

AUGUST.     * 

Now  for  a  Space  expect  much  Hot  Weather  and  Thunder,  and  it  would 
not  have  been  Blasphemy  if  I  had  said,  above  or  under  Ground. 

SEPTEMBER. 
Hatred  is  blind  as  well  as  Love. 

NOVEMBER. 

Gun  Powder  Plot 
We  ha'n't  forgot. 

Let  Thieves  beware  of  Burglary  lest  we  Dissect 
their  Bodies  and  set  up  their  Bones  for  Skeletons. 

DECEMBER. 

Now  warming  Pans 
are  better  than  Fans. 

The  Heavens  admit  but  one  Sun 
and  High  Places  but  one  Commander. 


100  ALMANACK    FOR    1735- 

Kind  READER. 

Be  not  affronted  if  I  offer  you  the  Opinion  of  the  learned 
Parts  of  Mankind,  concerning  those  Stars  that  Nightly  discover 
themselves  to  our  View  &  contemplation.  Under  the  general 
Name  of  Stars  is  comprehended  all  the  lustrous  Train  of  the 
Universe,  that  shine  by  their  innate  Light,  and  are  supposed  to 
be  Suns  to  other  systems ;  and  also  the  neighboring  Worlds  of 
our  own  System,  that  revolve  about  the  Sun,  the  Center  of  it. 
Our  Karth  is  above  One  hundred  Million  of  Miles  nearer  some 
of  the  fixed  Stars,  at  one  time  of  the  Year  than  at  another,  yet 
their  Parallax  is  scarce  sensible,  therefore  their  distance  must 
be  wonderfull.  Our  best  Telescopes  do  but  lessen  them,  'tis 
impossible  they  should  appear  so  Lucid  to  us  from  the  Light  of 
our  Sun  transmitted  to  them.  They  are  supposed  to  be  Suns 
themselves  that  Govern  in  a  Mundane  Space,  Comforting,  Heat 
ing,  and  Enlightening  the  Planets  of  their  respective  Systems, 
as  the  Sun  does  this  Earth  and  the  other  Planets  that  belong  to 
our  System.  These  new  Stars  that  sometimes  appear  and  then 
disappear,  Mr.  Derham  thinks  are  Planets  that  belong  to  some 
of  the  Systems  of  the  Fixed  Stars ;  and  that  they  become  visible 
when  they  are  in  that  part  of  their  Orbits  that  is  nearest  the 
Earth.  Dr.  Cheyne  observes,  as  there  are  Systems  that  can  stand 
round  our  System,  as  many  of  the  second  Magnitude  as  can 
stand  round  this  first  Range  of  Sphere,  and  so  on  so  that  the 
infinite  Extra  mundane  Space  is  beautifully  and  regularly 
adorned  with  Suns,  and  their  revolving  Worlds ;  and  the  great 
^Etherical  Field  composes  one  grand  System  of  Systems.  Not 
having  Room  to  multiply  Arguments  for  the  Proof  hereof,  I 
shall  only  add  that  this  new  System  (as  'tis  call'd)  gives  us  a 
grand  and  more  noble  Idea  of  the  Universe  than  any  other ;  and 
is  more  for  the  declarative  Glory  and  Honour  of  GOD  ;  more 
worthy  the  Power  and  Contrivance  of  an  infinite  Creator,  who 
alone  Circumscribes  the  Bounds  of  Matter,  and  is  Essentially 
Present  through  the  Immensity  of  this  Space. 

But  to  come  nearer  Home.  It  is  the  opinion  of  those  great 
Men  who  view  the  Heavens  with  all  their  golden  Furnature,  with 


ALMANACK  FOR  1735.  101 

no  careless  supine  Negligence,  but  with  a  k-ar-K-cl  Xic> 
search  into  the  courses,  Distances  and  Magnitudes  of  t)ie,  "Plaints, 
and  know  wherein  they  differ  from  the  Fixed  Stai^-  that  thc.se 
Planets  are  Worlds  or  places  of  Habitation,  and  tho'  there  is  no 
certainty  in  this  their  Opinion,  yet  there  is  great  Probability. 
That  the  Planets  are  Worlds  stock'd  with  proper  Inhabitants 
seems  to  be  the  consequence  of  what  we  know  and  are  certain 
of.  And  to  reason  from  what  we  see  and  are  sure  of  to  what  we 
cannot  is  no  false  Logick  :  For  instance,  a  Sailor  sailing  in  some 
distant  Clime,  and  should  come  so  nigh  the  Shore  of  a  foreign 
Country,  as  to  behold  Houses,  Barns,  fruitfull  Fields,  &c,  tho'  he 
saw  no  Man,  yet  might  he  not  fairly  Conclude  that  what  he  saw 
served  to  the  Use  of  Man  ?  and  that  some  Sort  of  People  dwelt 
there  ?  And  thus  in  the  present  Case,  by  the  help  of  Glasses  we 
get  so  nigh  the  Planets,  as  to  know  that  they  are  great  Globons, 
Opake  Bodies,  all  of  the  nature  of  our  Earth,  that  they  have  a 
Periodick  Motion  about  the  Sun,  which  Motion  is  not  in  the 
same  Place  with  that  of  their  Diurnal,  but  in  the  broad  Path  of 
the  Zodiack  at  an  Inclination  of  23  deg.  19  min.  so  that  they  (as 
well  as  our  Earth)  have  the  Seasons  of  Summer,  Winter,  Spring 
and  Autumn.  Our  Telescopes  also  discover  their  Diurnal  motion 
about  their  own  Axis,  which  must  cause  in  them  a  constant 
succession  of  Day  and  Night.  Saturn  and  Jupiter  have  their 
Satellites,  that  minister  to  them  by  Night,  as  our  Moon  does  to 
this  Earth.  Mr.  Huggins  discovered  clouds  in  the  Atmosphere 
of  Jupiter,  and  Mr.  Derham  (with  his  long  glass)  Mountains  and 
Seas  in  our  Moon.  Now  since  those  Planets  are  so  well  Accom 
modated  for  Habitation,  why  may  we  not  suppose  that  they  are 
Improved  to  the  best  purposes?  Since  the  divine  Architect  in 
their  Creation  has  not  made  'em  Inferior  to  our  Earth  for  Beauty 
and  Dignity,  and  has  given  them  Degrees  of  Light  and  Heat  in 
Proportion  to  their  Distance  from  the  Central  Fire  with  Alternate 
Day  and  Night,  and  a  beautiful  Succession  of  the  Seasons  of  the 
Year  as  they  travel  through  the  12  Signs  of  the  Zodiack  as  above 
mentioned,  why  should  we  make  vast  Lifeless  and  inanimate 
Desarts  of  them,  by  depriving  them  of  their  proper  inhabitants? 


102  ALMANACK   FOR    1735- 

Bid  the,Gotl -of  nature  make  their  Moons  in  vain?  that  shine  for 
the  ^Advantage  only  of  the  Planets  to  which  they  respectively 
belong,  and  not  for  ours.  What  Reason  or  what  Religion  obliges 
us  to  think  that  our  Earth  (so  much  Inferior  to  some  of  the  rest 
for  Magnitude)  is  the  only  Planet  in  the  Solar  System  that  is 
Inhabited? 


A  query  right  well  put :    What  and  Why  ? 


on  1735. — The  title-page  verse  leads  one  to  suspect  that  the 
Doctor  had  in  mind  the  irrepressible  boy  at  the  church  picnic, — during 
the  banana  season  perhaps — the  first  four  lines  bringing  the  subject  most 
vividly  to  our  recollection  at  this  period. 

The  monthly  lines  are  varied,  and  more  applicable  to  the  various  seasons 
they  accompany,  than  any  appearing  during  the  previous  two  or  three 
years,  while  the  sentiment  pervading  each  is  varied,  and  would  indicate  a 
merry  mood  in  some, — while  the  author  might  be  considered  somewhat 
cynical  in  others. 

In  January  he  starts  out  with  a  sociable  sort  of  suggestion,  and  then  drops 
into  cynicism  in  a  manner  hardly  to  be  considered  proper  in  a  person 
about  to  become  a  conjugal  victim  during  the  current  year.  During  Feb 
ruary  he  makes  some  amends  however. 

His  address  to  the  "  Winged  Travellers  "  over  March  is  quaint  and  wor 
thy  of  a  student  of  nature,  and  the  sentiment  of  the  following  month  is 
truly  poetic,  while  Arcadia  is  certainly  reached  in  the  "  merry  month  of 
May." 

In  June  he  becomes  quite  personal,  as  also  seems  apparent  in  October, 
something  having  evidently  occurred  in  his  ordinary  walks  to  prompt  the 
satire  therein  to  be  discovered. 

In  the  other  months  his  admiration  for  the  philosophy  of  nature  is 
manifested,  and  Geology,  Astronomy,  Entomology  each  receive  their 
meed,  while  curtain  falls  on  sad  winter  with  the  usual  melancholy  music. 

Intermingled  among  the  weather  aspects  for  the  year,  are  found  a 
melange  of  nonsense,  wisdom,  politics,  history,  and  domestic  economy. 

The  allusion  to  the  "Gun-Powder  Plot,"  shows  where  the  author's 
sympathies  tend,  and  succeeding  almanacks  rarely  omit  a  reference  to 
this  event. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1736.  103 

THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1736. 


By  |latJtcmii?l 


Student  in  Physick  and  Astronomy. 


BOSTON,  NEW  ENGLAND, 


Printed  by/.  Draper,  for  the  Booksellers,  1736. l 
Price  Four  Shillings  by  the  Dozen  &  Sixpence  Single. 


As  sev'n  streani'd  Nile  to  whose  kind  overflow, 

The  Aegyptian  Plains  their  yearly  Plenty  owe, 

Takes  its  first  rise  from  some  small  unknown  Fountain, 

That  bubbles  at  the  Foot  of  a  steep  mountain  : 

So  ho  !  Astronomy  now  mounts  a  height 

And  with  its  Lustre  dazles  our  dull  Sight, 

The  root  from  whence  it  first  began  to  grow, 

Lay  couch'd  in  Principles  obscure  and  low. 


JANUARY. 

The  Muses  tremble  with  a  faultering  Wing, 
While  Nature's  great  Catastrophe  they  sing, 
For  Helicon  its  self  their  sacred  Throne 
Must  to  the  Womb  of  Chaos  back  return, 
The  Chearful  Regions  of  the  Earth  and  Air, 
Is  fill'd  with  Horror,  Darkness,  and  Despair. 

FEBRUARY. 

Confusion  reigns !     The  glorious  Prince  of  Day 
No  longer  can  his  golden  Beams  display, 


ljohn  Draper,  was  brother-in-law  to  Bartholomew  Green,  Jr.,  the 
printer  of  the  previous  almanacks,  and  served  his  apprenticeship  with 
his  father-in-law,  Bartholomew -Green,  Sr.,  and  at  his  decease  in  December, 
1732,  occupied  his  printing  house  in  Newbury  street.  He  printed  the 
almanacks  for  the  years  1736  to  1763  inclusive.  He  died  November  29, 
1762. 


104  ALMANACK  FOR  1736. 

To  distant  Climes,  and  frozen  Regions  warm, 

But  this  tremendous  universal  Storm, 

Blows  back  the  vital  Vertue  of  his  Light, 

And  Darkness  veils  his  Face  from  mortal  Sight. 

The  Moon  no  more  as  heretofore  adorns, 

With  Silver  borrow'd  Light,  her  crescent  Horns. 

MARCH. 

No  more  She  Rules  as  Regent  of  the  Night, 

But  fills  her  Orb  with  Blood  instead  of  Light, 

And  Dissolution  Reigns  Both  near  and  far, 

Through  Heav'ns  wide  Circuit  round :  Bach  shining  Star 

His  Intricate  Nocturnal  Mazes  stops 

And  from  his  Place  assign'd  in  Heav'n,  down  drops. 

APRIL. 

Their  Light  Extinct,  Nature  in  Darkness  ends, 
Except  what  Light  Hell's  horrid  Bosom  sends, 
Around  the  Sky,  her  baneful  Torches  come ! 
To  Light  dissolving  Nature  to  her  Tomb. 
The  Earth  with  trembling  Agonies  doth  Roll, 
As  tho'  she'd  mix  her  Center  with  the  Poll. 

MAY. 

The  Seas  do  roar  and  every  peaceful  Lake, 
And  Wandering  Rivers  horrid  murmurings  make, 
The  Rocks  explode,  and  trembling  Mountains  nod, 
And  Valleys  rise  at  the  approaching  God 
From  Heav'ns  high  Court,  angelick  Throngs  descend, 
Myriads  this  great  Solemnity  attend. 

JUNE- 

The  bold  and  daring  impious  Sons  of  Men 
Call  on  the  Mountains  now  to  cover  them, 
And  screen  'em  from  this  Hurricane  of  Wo, 
Which  their  incensed  Judge  begins  to  Blow 
Onward  in  awful  Majesty  he  comes ! 
Whose  Glory  far  outshines  ten  Thousand  Suns  : 

JULY. 

For  fleshly  Eyes,  too,  too  amazing  bright ! 
That  all  the  World  is  changed  at  the  Sight, 
Immediately,  not  to  Transmute  again, 
But  are  from  Mortals,  fix'd  Immortal  Men, 
A  rending  Sound,  from  the  expanded  Skies, 
Commands  the  Dead,  the  sleepy  Dead,  to  Rise. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1736.  105 

AUGUST. 

Out  of  their  Beds,  and  instantly  to  come 
Before  the  Judge,  and  hear  their  final  Doom. 
Almighty  Power  the  sacred  Voice  attends, 
And  with  stupendious  Energy  it  rends 
The  silent  Graves,  and  every  vaulted  Tomb 
Searching  each  secret  Corner  in  Death's  Room. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Brings  out  the  Particles  of  human  Clay 
Which  scatter'd  in  these  gloomy  Mansions  lay, 
And  weaves  'em  up  in  this  mysterious  Loome, 
By  far  more  curious  now  than  in  the  Womb, 
All  that  have  liv'd  and  dy'd,  now  live  again, 
So  the  whole  World  is  burthen'd  to  contain 

OCTOBER. 

This  numerous  Throng,  Now  Languages  all  kinds, 
Nations  and  Kindreds  all,  from  the  four  Winds 
Are  gather'd ;  and  before  the  Judge  are  brought, 
Whose  piercing  Eye,  discerns  each  secret  Thought, 
Each  Word  and  Act  that  every  Person  wrought 
In  all  his  life,  through  every  age  that's  past ; 
And  bids  his  Angels  bind  the  Wicked  fast, 

NOVEMBER. 

Both  Hand  and  Feet  with  Adamantine  Chains 
And  send  'em  headlong  to  eternal  Pains. 
Infernal  Fiends  drove  to  their  prison  fly, 
With  doleful  Hissings  through  the  melting  Sky. 
Their  Blasphemies  now  meets  a  just  Reward, 
Hell's  Gates  on  them  Eternally  are  barr'd 

DECEMBER. 

The  Good  are  crown'd  with  joys  that  never  cease, 
With  Realms  of  Light !  and  unmolested  Peace  ! 
In  this  Tremendous  Day  where  shall  I  stand  ? 
Give  me  a  Place  (O  Lord)  at  thy  right  Hand ! 
Where  I  in  safety  may  thy  Power  admire ! 
And  see  this  World  and  all  Things  in't  Expire. 


The  Learned  Samuel  Lee  (with  his  usual  Flight  of  Expres 
sion)  observes  thus  :  "  May  not  our  Admiration  be  even  inflamed 
at  the  quick  and  volable  Motion  of  the  little  Eels,  that  swim  up 


io6  ALMANACK  FOR  1736. 

and  down  in  their  Sea  of  a  Drop  of  Vinegar,  more  than  when  the 
Marriners  from  their  Ships  view  the  Tossings  and  Tumblings 
of  the  Whales  in  the  Atlantick  Ocean  ?  "  And  may  I  not  venture 
to  say,  that  the  Wisdom  of  God  is  conspicuous  not  only  in 
the  great  and  massy  Works  of  Creation,  the  glorious  Stars,  that 
beautify  the  Heavens  and  fill  the  Infinite  Spaces  with  Light ! 
but  also  the  minute  Animalcula,  the  flying  Insect,  and  groveling 
Reptile,  must  bring  us  to  the  acknowledgement  of  a  Supreme 
Being ;  since  there  is  so  much  Counsel  and  Wisdom  discover 
able  in  the  Formation  of  their  Bodies  and  in  the  Continuation  of 
their  Species.  They  are  made  Compleat  and  perfect  in  their 
Kind,  and  want  no  Parts  either  Convenient  or  Necessary  for 
them.  The  Learned  have  sufficiently  exploded  the  Notion  of 
an  Equivocal  or  spontaneous  Generation  of  Animals,  and  will 
not  allow  the  vilest  and  most  contemptible  Insect  to  be  gener 
ated  without  Parents,  Male  and  Female  of  the  same  kind.  And 
that  every  Animal  proceeds  from  a  Pre-existent  Animalcula  in 
semine  Masculine,  and  that  all  the  Parts  of  an  Animal  did  Exist, 
and  its  Fluids  were  in  Motion  before  Generation,  and  that  the 
Females  afford  nothing  in  the  Production  of  their  young  ones 
but  a  proper  Nidus  where  their  Parts  increase  in  Magnitude,  as 
they  receive  Nourishment,  is  evident  both  from  Reason  and 
Experiments.  It  is  not  to  be  questioned  but  that  the  various 
Worms  bred  in  the  Intestines  of  Man  and  Beast,  are  taken  into 
their  respective  Bodies  by  Meats  and  Drinks :  The  Botts  in 
Horses  is  a  noble  Instance  of  the  Truth  hereof;  for  if  we  Trace 
this  Worm  in  its  Transmutation  from  a  Vermiculus  to  a  flying 
Insect,  we  shall  find  that  after  it  is  Ejected  from  the  Bowels  of 
a  Horse,  it  lies  in  the  Excrements,  where  it  receives  proper  Nu 
triment,  till  shifting  the  Pellicula,  it  becomes  a  Flyer,  resemb 
ling  a  Bee,  but  with  a  long  Tail,  wherewith  it  fastens  its  Ova  or 
Nets  to  the  Hair  of  the  Horse's  Legs  and  other  Parts,  the  Horse 
biting  and  scratching  his  Legs  with  his  Teeth  tears  off  the 
Animalcula  contained  in  the  Egg,  and  with  his  Meat  and  Drink 
swallows  them  down  where  they  become  Worms  again.  That 
this  well-known  Fly  proceeds  from  a  Bott,  is  notorious,  many 
having  try'd  the  Experiment.  There  must  be  an  Ova  from  the 
Female,  impregnated  with  an  Animalcula  from  the  Male  in  the 
production  of  these  Worms.  "  There  is  nothing  in  the  Animal 


ALMANACK  FOR  1736.  107 

Machine,  (as  Dr.  C.  Mather  observes)  but  an  inconceivable 
Number  of  branching  and  winding  Canals,  filled  with  Liquors 
of  different  Natures,  going  a  perpetual  round,  and  no  more 
capable  of  producing  the  wonderful  Fabrick  of  another  Animal, 
than  a  Thing  is  of  making  itself."  They  have  a  Head,  Heart, 
Veins  and  Arteries,  Bones  tied  together  with  Tendons,  Muscles, 
inflated  with  Animal  Spirits  :  which  move  the  same  spontane 
ously  ;  They  continue  the  same  Animals  from  one  Generation 
to  another :  their  Species  do  not  alter,  which  is  sufficient  to  per- 
swade  all  thinking  Persons  that  all  Animals  are  univocally  pro 
duced.  The  same  might  be  said  of  Vegetables,  but  the  con 
tracted  Limits  of  a  single  Sheet  will  not  permit ;  I  shall  there 
fore  conclude  with  the  following  Corrollary,  namely,  that  the 
Heads  and  Clothes  of  uncleanly  People  do  breed  Lice,  that 
Mites  are  bred  in  Cheese,  and  that  Worm-Seed  breeds  as  many 
Worms  as  it  kills  is  a  vulgar  Error. 

Some  Nurses  are  so  Superstitious  That  they  dare  not  give 
their  Children  Worm-Seed  without  pounding  and  sifting  it, 
affirming  that  every  Seed  that  escapes  being  bruised  in  the 
Mortar  will  become  a  live  Worm  in  the  Bowels  of  the  Child. 
But,  by-the-by,  it  is  an  excellent  Medicine  for  the  purpose,  and 
they  need  not  be  afraid  to  use  it ;  for,  if  they  will  prove  that  it 
will  breed  Worms  in  Children,  I  can  as  easily  prove  that  it  can 
breed  Children  in  Women ;  and  so  those  unhappy  Persons  who 
have  had  the  ill  Luck  to  have  Children  without  Fathers,  need 
not  lie  under  the  Imputation  of  Scandal,  if  they  can  produce 
sufficient  Evidence  that  they  have  taken  Worm-Seed. 

"  EACH  verdant  Plant,  each  fragrant  Herb  that  grows, 

"  The  great  Jehovah's  forming  Wisdom  shows  ; 

"  How  each  bright  Stem  it's  Species  will  produce, 

"  Each  Vein,  each  Fibre  has  it's  proper  use ; 

"  How  the  male  Plant  impregns  the  softer  kind, 

"  And  their  joint  Beauties  in  the  Sons  we  find. — 

"Jehovah  gave  the  Sun  his  piercing  Ray, 

•'  To  glad  dull  Mortals,  and  to  rule  the  Day ; 

'•To  call  each  secret  Seed  from  Nature's  Womb, 

"Mature  the  Birth,  and  swell  the  fragrant  Bloom." 


io8  ALMANACK  FOR  1736. 


on  1736.  —  The  general  tendency  of  the  muse  this  year  is 
toward  the  sublime,  and  certainly  the  author  could  not  well  be  expected 
to  be  sublime  without  singing  a/^aw  to  the  rapidly  advancing  science  of 
astronomy,  and  extolling  the  achievements  of  his  age  in  this  particular 
direction. 

But  the  monthly  verses  !  Shade  of  Michael  Wigglesworth,1  look  down 
upon  us  and  say  if  your  spirit  did  not  prompt  the  muse  who  sat  at  the 
Doctor's  elbow,  while  he  indited  this  —  poetical  end  of  all  things,  —  this 
frightful  calamity  —  this  final  "  crush,  conclude,  and  quell." 

There  can  be  no  manner  of  doubt  but  what  the  muses  did  "  tremble 
with  a  faultering  wing,"  and  there  is  a  general  irrepressible  tendency  of 
the  present  commentator  to  shiver  also  and  pull  the  clothes  over  his  head. 
Pen  absolutely  refuses  its  office,  and  the  reader  is  only  desired  to  read  the 
scroll,  formulate  his  own  comments,  and  at  the  end  only  unite  with  the 
Doctor  and  myself  in  a  modest  request  for  a  place  on  the  grandstand  with 
a  fan,  in  order  to  secure  an  eligible  view  of  the  final  denouement. 

In  the  contemplation  of  such  serious  subjects  as  the  poem  sets  forth, 
the  author  had  no  inclination  toward  either  humor,  or  anything  trivial  in 
in  its  nature,  —  consequently  no  interjected  squibs  of  any  kind  are  found 
in  the  "  weather  column." 

The  essay  this  year  is  upon  the  theory  of  the  development  of  species* 
and  cannot  but  prove  very  interesting  to  the  modern  reader,  and  food  for 
thoiight  to  those  who  have  seriously  considered  the  theory  of  spontane 
ous  generation. 

The  language  used  by  the  Doctor  is  not  burdened  with  scientific  terms, 
but  of  a  quality  suited  to  the  comprehension  of  his  audience,  and  his  illus 
tration  aptly  devised  for  the  understanding  of  all. 

He  quotes  from  the  learned  Samuel  Lee  for  his  premises,  and  calls  in 
the  voluminous  Dr.  Cotton  Mather  with  an  "  observation  "  for  his  indorse 
ment  :  while  the  corollary  is  that  of  the  only  Doctor  Ames,  which  is  self- 
evident,  convincing  and  not  only  to  the  point,  but  consoling  to  those 
unfortunates  who  may  be  situated  in  the  manner  mentioned  in  the  con 
cluding  lines. 


1  Michael  Wigglesworth  (circa  1690)  was  an  illustrator  of  the  hell  of 
the  Rev.  John  Calvin.  For  a  sample  of  the  fireworks  used  see  Tyler's 
History  of  American  Literature. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1737.  109 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1737 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 


BOSTON,  NEW  ENGLAND: 

Printed  byjo/m  Draper ;  for  the  Booksellers  1737. 
Price  Six  Pence  Single ;  and  Four  Shillings  per  Dozen. 


Year  after  Year  insensibly  creeps  on, 
Till  our  Last  Year,  and  final  Hour  shall  come : 
Relentless  DEATH  will  no  Excuses  have 
But  first  and  last  drags  all  into  the  Grave 
There  Beauty,  Riches,  Furniture,  and  cost, 
And  High  Distinctions  here  on  Earth  are  lost: 
Ah  !  Then,  such  Things  are  vain !  Vain  as  they  be 
We  love  'em,  for  we  all  love  Vanity. 


The  AUTHOR  on  his  FATHER'S  DEATH. 

HE'S  Dead ! 

His  great  Seraphick  Genius  now  is  fled, 
The  melancholy  news  has  reached  your  Ears 
Doubtless  before  this  little  Tract  appears. 
But  since  his  Labours  first  matur'd  its  Birth, 
It  is  but  justice  here  to  mourn  his  Death. 
I,  in  his  Arms  from  Evening  Dews  preserv'd, 
The  wandering  Glories  overhead  observ'd  : 
Scarce  pip'd  the  shell,  ere  his  too  fond  Desires 
My  Talent  in  this  public  way  requires. 
When  puzzled,  I  could  unto  him  repair, 
Who  knew  the  Heav'ns  as  if  he  had  dwelt  there 
Imbolden'd  thus,  I  ventured  on  the  Stage 
And  run  the  risque  of  carping  Critick's  Rage. 
But  now  he's  gone  !  URANIA  O,  make 
Me,  me  thy  Son  !     For  thy  Beloved's  sake. 
Bear  the  Deceas'd  upon  thy  Wings,  O,  Fame, 
Among  th'  Astronomers  give  him  a  Name : 


HO  ALMANACK   FOR    1737- 

For  if  Pythagoras  believ'd  had  been, 

Men  might  have  thought  great  Newton's  soul  in  him 

But  hold  :  if  him  I've  praised  in  what  I've  done 

It  may  be  called  immodest  in  a  son : 

But  Gratitude  Extorts  from  me  his  due 

And  Bnvy  owns  that  what  I've  writ  is  true. 


JANUARY. 

TIME  is  a  short  Parenthesis, 

Placed  in  between  the  two  Eternities, 

And  joins  the  vast  unlimited  Abyss, 

(Eternal  Space)  at  its  Extremities, 

The  Length  whereof 's  but  a  contracted  Span, 

And  one  small  Point  includes  the  Age  of  Man. 

FEBRUARY. 

Each  winged  Moment's  measured  by  the  Sun, 
Whilst  round  the  Earth  the  glitt'ring  Monarch  rides, 
His  golden  Chariot  Wheels  like  Lightning  run 
So  Day  and  Night  his  constant  Course  divides 
Each  Hour  succedent  always  presses  on, 
And  whilst  we  Speak  the  present  Moment's  gone. 

MARCH. 

Time's  Parent  of  all  Sublumary  Things, 
And  gives  'em  Beauty  here  as  well  as  Birth, 
Their  Glory  down  to  Dissolution  brings : 
And  Monster-like  devours  all  she  brings  forth : 
They  in  the  Morning  bloom,  at  Noon  decay 
And  in  the  Evening  vanish  quite  away. 

APRIL. 

Thousands  of  Victims  daily  fall  by  Time, 

A  Sacrifice  to  her  voracious  Jaws, 

Not  only  Men,  but  all  the  World  resign, 

There's  no  Reprieve  allow'd  by  Nature's  Laws, 

Inviolable  Laws  of  Destiny 

Ordain  that  all  Things  born  shall  surely  die. 

MAY. 

The  stately  Fabrick  of  the  Universe, 
Wherein  the  World's  are  wonderfully  made, 
Cannot  Endure  the  Test  of  Time  :  Alas  ! 


ALMANACK  FOR  1737.  in 

They'll  be  worn  out,  and  all  their  Beauties  fade. 
From  Chaos  huge !  all  Things  sprang  up  at  first, 
And  all  must  be  reduced  to  pristine  Dust. 

JUNE. 

Time  ravishes  the  tender  Virgins  young, 

Whose  sparkling  Eyes  ten  thousand  Charms  display, 

And  maims  their  comely  Features  every  one 

And  takes  their  beautious  Countenance  away : 

For  furrow'd  Face,  and  wrinkled  Brows  they'll  have, 

And  palsy  Joints  that  tremble  o're  the  Grave. 


Oh,  Time !  thou  dost  th'  Art'  ficer  confound, 

And  princely  Palaces  are  spoil'd  by  thee, 

Defac'd  and  Prostrate  on  the  humble  Ground 

The  ancient,  stately,  glorious  Cities  be. 

Thou  hast  broke  down  their  Walls  with  cank'rous  Rust 

And  turn'd  their  beauteous  Work  to  mould'ring  Dust. 

AUGUST. 

Those  Heroes  who  have  god-like  Actions  done, 

Whose  Names  alone  in  spite  of  Time  remain, 

Whose  Feets  in  War  immortal  Honours  won, 

Were  all  at  last  by  this  dire  Conqeror  slain : 

Who  drank  the  Strength  that  should  their  Joints  supply 

Aged  and  weak  the  glorious  Champions  die. 

SEPTEMBER. 

The  Lyon  strong  whose  roar  like  Thunder  fills 
With  Horror,  all  the  ravenous  Brotherhood, 
Much  stronger  Time,  HIM  gradually  kills; 
As  easy  as  the  Beasts  of  feebler  Blood : 
Harmless  through  Age  the  royal  Monster  lies, 
Contracted  in  his  silent  Den,  and  dies. 

OCTOBER. 

As  runs  our  Glass,  Times  tantalizing  Charms 
Fly  our  pursuit,  ever  deceiving  us, 
For  Disappointment  hugs  us  in  her  Arms, 
And  hop'd  for  Blessings  often  prove  a  Curse. 
Bliss  unconfirm'd  no  solid  Bliss  can  be, 
Since  the  next  Moment  all  our  Joys  may  flee. 


ii2  ALMANACK  FOR  1737. 

NOVEMBER. 

Whether  to  Learning  we  our  selves  apply 

To  drive  the  mists  of  Ignorance  away, 

Or  with  the  Demi-gods  for  Honour  vie, 

Or  Wealth,  or  with  the  Baits  of  Pleasure  play. 

Death  unawares,  like  an  untimely  Frost, 

Nips  up  our  Lives,  and  all  our  Labour's  lost. 

DECEMBER. 

Then  smite,  old  Time,  thy  Rage  we  now  provoke, 
Since  thou  to  us  no  cordial  Friend  hath  been, 
But  the  last  fatal  Blow  of  thy  Scythe's  stroke, 
Secures  us  quite,  and  Changes  the  dark  Scene, 
When  Thou  shalt  die,  WE  from  the  loathsome  Tomb 
Shall  rise,  and  have  Youth  in  Eternal  Bloom. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR.    - 

JANUARY. 

As  Cold  as  Charity. 

FEBRUARY, 

Now  Snow,  or  Rain,  or  Hail 
Or  else  the  Planets  Fail. 

MARCH. 

Intestine  Jars,  and  Foreign  Wars 

this  Month  arise 

or  Jove  my  Faith  beguiles. 

MAY. 

Behold !  The  Power  of  the  SUN  in  the  Resurrection  of  the  PLANTS. 
Consider  the  Consequence  of  Excessive  or  unlawful  Pleasure  &  Beware. 

JUNE. 


A  Maid  so  trig'd  by  Art 


That  her  own  self  was  the  least  part. 

AUGUST. 
He  that  lives  too  fast,  may  die  too  soon. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1737.  113 


NOVEMBER. 

Hre  you  pretend  to  burn  the  Pope 
Secure  the  Papists  with  a  Rope. 

NOVEMBER. 

Reader.     I  don't  know 

But  my  Rain  may  prove  Snow. 

The  conchant  Bears  now  suck  their  Claws, 
And  Sluggards  too  of  foodless  Jaws. 


Kind  READER  : 

You  may  remember  that  in  the  Year  1734,  I  answered 
objections  against  the  Copernican  Hypothesis;  and  in  the  Year 
1735  I  argued  the  Similitude  of  the  Planets  to  this  Earth,  and 
the  Probability  of  their  being  inhabited  with  Creatures  in  like 
Manner  as  this  Karth  is  ;  I  shall  now  give  you  the  Astronomy 
of  these  Inhabitants,  or  how  things  would  appear  to  an  Eye  in 
each  Planet,  according  to  the  Observations  of  the  ingenious  Mr. 
Hnygens,  whose  Glasses  Mr.  Derham  accounts  the  best. 

And  first  to  begin  with  the  innermost  and  nearest  the  Sun. 

§  MERCURY  is  three  times  nearer  that  vast  Body  of  Light 
and  Heat  than  we  are ;  Hence  they  see  him  three  times  bigger, 
and  feel  him  nine  Times  hotter  than  we  do.  They  may  have 
Venus  and  the  Earth  opposite  to  the  Sun,  which  at  such  Times 
shine  most  gloriously  on  the  Mercurials. 

?  The  Inhabitants  of  VENUS  have  much  the  same  Face  of 
Things  as  those  in  Mercury.  The  Sun  appears  by  half  larger 
in  his  Diameter  to  them  than  to  us,  and  affords  them  above  twice 
as  much  Light  and  Heat.  Our  Earth  appears  at  sometimes 
much  larger  to  them  than  ever  Venus  does  to  us.  A  Year  there 
is  compleated  in  7  and  a  half  of  our  Months. 

cT  The  next  Planet  in  the  Solar  System  is  this  Globe  of 
Earth  on  which  we  live,  and  next  to  that  is  the  Planet  MARS 
in  which  there  are  certain  Spots,  by  the  constant  Returns  of 
which  his  Days  and  Nights  have  been  found  to  be  of  the  same 
Length  with  ours ;  and  but  little  difference  between  Summer 
and  Winter.  The  years  there  are  twice  as  long  as  ours.  Our 
Earth  appears  to  them  as  Venus  doth  to  us,  and  never  above  48 
deg.  distant  from  the  Sun. 


ii4  ALMANACK  FOR  1737. 

2L  The  forementioned  Planets,  Earth  &  all,  are  not  worth 
mentioning  in  comparison  of  Saturn  and  JUPITER,  with  Respect 
to  Magnitude  and  Plurality  of  Moons.  For  the  Diameter  of 
Jupiter  is  above  twenty  times  bigger  than  that  of  our  Earth, 
and  he  has  four  Satellites  that  constantly  revolve  about  him,  as 
our  Moon  does  about  us ;  so  that  Jupiter  is  seldom  or  never 
without  Moonshine  Nights.  The  frequent  Conjunctions  and 
Eclipses  of  these  Moons  afford  a  pleasant  Sight  to  the  Inhab 
itants  there.  He  enjoys  a  perpetual  Equinox,  hence  his  Days 
and  Nights  are  always  equal,  five  Hours  each.  One  of  his 
Years  is  equal  to  twelve  of  ours. 

T?  SATURN  is  above  Ten  times  further  distant  from  the  Sun 
than  our  Earth,  and  by  consequence  Enjoys  not  above  the  hun 
dredth  Part  of  that  influence  from  him  that  the  Earth  does. 
But  still  he  has  the  advantage  of  his  Five  Moons,  and  the 
delightful  Prospect  that  the  L,uminous  Ring  about  him  affords, 
which  by  Night  appears  like  a  shining  Bow  to  some  Parts  of  his 
Globe,  and  in  the  Morning  grows  weaker  and  paler  than  our 
Moon  in  the  Day-time.  The  length  of  his  Days  cannot  be 
determined,  because  his  Diurnal  Rotation  has  not  been  discov 
ered.  But  one  of  his  Years  is  as  long  as  Thirty  of  ours.  They 
that  are  inhabitants  of  Saturn  know  of  no  Planet  but  Jupiter, 
which  appears  to  them  as  Venus  does  to  us,  never  removing 
above  37  degr.  from  the  Sun.  Whereas  the  Axis  of  our  Earth 
inclines  to  the  Place  of  the  Ecliptic.  23  Degr.  and  an  half, 
Saturn's  does  31  or  more;  so  that  they  have  a  greater  Difference 
between  Summer  and  Winter  than  we  ;  upon  which  account 
also  their  Moons  decline  much  from  the  Path  the  Sun  seams  to 
move  in,  and  the  Inhabitants  can  have  a  full  moon  never  but 
just  at  the  Equinoxes,  which  is  twice  in  thirty  of  our  Years, 

Thus  much  for  the  primary  Planets,  for  the  Contracted 
I/imits  of  a  single  Sheet  will  not  permit  me  to  give  more  than 
a  hint  upon  each.  I  shall  just  mention  our  MOON,  and  leave  the 
rest  of  our  secondary  Planets  to  the  Astronomers  of  Saturn  and 
fupiter  to  which  they  properly  belong. 

3  Mr.  Derham  asserts  that  there  is  Mountains,  Rivers  and 
Seas  in  the  Moon,  and  others  deny  it ;  and  whether  it  be  so  or 
no,  or  whether  She  be  inhabited  or  not  I  cannot  tell ;  but  if  I 
had  the  Machine  of  the  little  Spaniard  who  flew  thither  with 


ALMANACK  FOR  1737.  115 

his  Gauses,*  I  would  go  and  see:  there  if  I  found  neither  Atmos 
phere,  Rivers,  nor  Seas,  nor  any  living  Animal;  I  should  be 
sure  to  find  the  Earth's  Monthly  Wane  and  Increase ;  I  should 
see  it  half,  horned  and  full  by  turns,  and  five  Times  as  Luminous 
as  ever  I  beheld  the  Moon  from  the  Earth ;  I  should  see  the 
Earth  turn  upon  itself  presenting  me  sometimes  with  a  Pros 
pect  of  Europe  and  Africa,  and  then  of  Asia  and  America. 
Every  twenty-four  Hours  I  should  have  the  Pleasure  of  viewing 
all  the  seas  and  Continents  on  Earth,  even  those  that  lie  near 
the  Poles  yet  unknown  and  undiscovered  by  us. 


Oil  I737«  -  The  salutatory  title  page  poem  is  of  the  usual 
sentimental  nature ;  Dissolution,  Death  and  Vanity  being  the  chief  topics 
considered  by  the  muse. 

On  the  next  page  is  evidence  that  the  Angel  Azrail  has  received  his 
commands,  and  that  the  author's  father  and  preceptor  in  his  astronomical 
studies,  deceased  during  the  preceding  year,  aged  about  59  years.  In  a 
poem  the  author  pours  forth  his  soul  in  mournful  rhythm  at  the  sad 
event.  The  verse  is  very  creditable,  and  bears  abundant  evidence  of  the 
talents  possessed  by  the  elder  Ames. 

The  text  of  the  monthly  verses  is  the  great  "horological  enemy"  Time, 
and  the  general  tendency  of  the  lines  is  in  the  direction  of  "  Pollok's 
Course,"  over  which  we  have  many  hours  and  days  puzzled  in  parsing  at 
school. 

What  Time  does  not  do,  or  accomplish,  is  certainly  omitted  by  the  poet, 
but  I  greatly  "  conceit"  that  the  ground  is  most  thoroughly  covered,  the 
province  of  Time  being  most  amply  set  forth. 

Humour,  Wisdom,  and  Fun  appear  in  homeopathic  doses ;  as  usual  to 
the  point  direct.  Under  November  we  find  a  couplet  concerning  the 
Pope,  and  his  alleged  complicity,  in  the  lease  of  the  cellar  beneath  the 
Parliament  House.  What  would  our  early  ancestors  have  done  for  a 
"  Fourth  of  July"  before  that  erstwhile  memorable  day,  had  it  not  been 
for  the  tenants  of  that  cellar,  and  their  faux2  pas. 

The  Essay  is  a  very  simple  and  practical  lecture  on  the  astronomy  ot 
our  Solar  system. 


1  Possibly,  wings. 

2  In  this  connection  pronounced  as  though  spelled  fawkes. 


n6  ALMANACK  FOR  1738. 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR    1738. 


BY  NATHANAEI,  AMES. 


BOSTON,  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 


Printed  by  John  Draper ',  for  the  Booksellers  1738. 
Price  Six  Pence  Single,  and  Four  Shillings  per  Dozen. 


Had  ADAM  stood  in  Innocence  till  Now, 

And  his  blest  Sons  had  deign'd  to  hold  the  Plough 

No  L,abour  had  fatigu'd,  nor  Time  had  spoil'd 

His  Youth  :  but  Spring  had  ever  blooming  smil'd, 

No  L/ust  for  Pelf,  nor  Heart  distressing  Pain 

Had  seiz'd  the  Miser,  nor  the  rural  Swain  : 

Nor  Vice  as  now  with  Vertue  ne'er  had  vi'd 

And  Heaven's  Omnipotence  is  self  defy'd. 

Nor  Lawyers,  Priests  nor  Doctors  ne'er  had  been 

If  Man  had  stood  against  th'  Assaults  of  Sin. 

But  oh,  He  fell !    and  so  accurs'd  we  be 

The  World  is  now  oblig'd  to  use  all  Three. 


When  once  our  Friends  do  quit  the  living  Shore 

We  hear  from  them  no  more. 
Do  any  curious  Minds  desire  to  know 

Where  'tis  they  go, 

Or  how  they  fare 
Let  them  be  pleas'd  to  die 

Only  to  trie, 
Or  else  remain  in  Ignorance  as  they  were. 

Thus  whether  they  fare  ill  or  well 

Since  not  allow'd  to  tell. 
Who'd  voluntary  enter  Charon 's  Boat. 
So  Masonry  and  Death  are  both  the  same 

Tho'  of  a  different  Name. 
If  Good  there  is  in  their  Society 

'  Tis  free  for  those  that  try  ; 
But  like  the  Grave  let  not  the  Living  know't. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1738. 

JANUARY. 

Immortal  Spir't  Existence  thou  receiv'd 

When  the  ALMIGHTY  on  thy  Substance  breath'd, 

Which  in  the  dark  Inclosure  of  the  Womb, 

Lay  hid  in  Secret  till  thy  Breath  was  come, 

Thy  Mind,  a  universal  Blank,  and  fair,  ~| 

Immensly  large,  but  nothing  written  there ; 

Soon  as  the  Lab'riug  Lungs  feed  on  the  elastic  Air.      \ 

FEBRUARY. 

A  Tide  of  Glory  visits  both  the  Eyes, 
Whose  usual  Orbs  contract  the  sweet  Surprise : 
Which  by  the  Optick  Nerve  is  carried  on, 
For  the  young  Soul  to  cogitate  upon. 
This  Sour,  in  whom  Sensation  only  dwells, 
Both  Sees  and  Feels  just  as  his  Senses  tells. 

MARCH. 

His  vivifying  Vehicle  exerts 

To  animate  his  Mass  in  all  its  Parts : 

Thus  when  the  Body's  touch'd,  some  Nerve  receives 

Whatever  Stroak  the  outward  Object  gives 

Which  by  the  waveing  Fluids  they  contain,    } 

Hand  on  the  impulse  to  the  tender  Brain, 

The  Seat  of  the  immortal  Monarch's  Reign.  ) 

APRIL. 

Thus  has  the  Soul  a  Thousand  Roads  to  bring 

Intelligence  from  every  outward  Thing : 

But  O !  sometimes  they  clog'd,  do  all  mistake, 

And  cheat  the  Mind  in  the  Reports  they  make 

As  now  untill'd  as  Vines  the  Field  adorns, 

But  curs'd  with  Weeds,  unfruitful  Briars  and  Thorns. 

MAY. 

So  Sacred  Truth  will  all  our  Search  elude, 

Till  Error  is  by  Reason's  Force  subdued. 

Thick  Fogs  of  Ignorance  obstruct  the  Mind, 

And  baneful  Prejudice  of  every  kind, 

Disguise  thy  Light,  ( O,  Truth ! )  and  strive  to  keep  us  blind 

E're  we  arrive  to  two  or  three  Years  old, 

Our  Nurse  ten  thousand  fairy  Tales  has  told. 


n8  ALMANACK  FOR  1738. 

JUNE. 

These  first  Mistakes  leave  on  us  such  a  Print, 

That  Age  mature  scarce  thinks  there's  nothing  in't. 

But  few  of  all  the  numerous  humane  Kind, 

But  what  remain  in  Youthful  Errors  blind. 

The  glorious  Light  of  Nature's  Mysteries  ~\ 

Ne'er  dawns  to  bless  a  Multitude  of  Eyes, 

That  roll  in  Vain.     As  Children  of  a  Larger  Size.  ) 

JULY. 

Our  Passions  Soul  like  raging  Billows  roll, 
Eclipse  the  Mind  and  darken  all  the  Soul : 
Celestial  Truths  neglected  Light  disowns, 
And  Heaven-born  Reason's  Majesty  dethrone  : 
To  add  no  more,  mistake  a  Thousand  Ways, 
The  unwary  Mind  into  her  Snares  betrays. 

AUGUST. 

Thus  Shipwrack'd  we,  beset  on  Every  Side, 
Toss'd  to  and  fro  with  the  impetuous  Tide, 
Of  Error's  raging  Sea.     Can  we  alone 
Grope  through  this  dark  impenetrable  Storm  ? 
How  may  our  Eyes,  TRUTH'S  glorious  Light  discry, 
His  Path  pursue,  and  gloomy  Error  fly? 

SEPTEMBER. 

His  Secret  Way  through  dark  Meanders  learn, 
And  his  fair  Mark  from  foul  Disguise  discern : 
Hail !  Alma  mater  hail !     Learning's  Delight ! 
The  Haunt  where  Muses  revel  Days  and  Night. 
Is  truth's  eternal  Mysteries  made  known 
To  thee,  and  to  thy  Favorite  Sons  alone  ? 

OCTOBER. 

Hast  thou  the  Steep  and  hard  Access  found  out, 
To  climb  with  Ease  the  Heliconian  Height  ? 
If  so  indeed,  more  thou  hast  understood 
Than  all  thy  Fathers  did  or  Ever  could. 
Search  the  renowned  ancient  Schools,  and  then 
You'll  find  the  Learned  err'd  like  other  men. 

NOVEMBER. 

This  World  in  which  such  Wisdom  is  display'd, 

Was  by  unguided,  inert,  Atoms  made, 

As  Epicurus  and  his  senseless  Followers  said. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1738. 

Phylosophy  in  Aristotle's  Schools 
Taught  all  his  Scholars  to  be  errand  Fools : 
Cartesius,  (whom  eternal  Honours  crown) 
Turn'd  his  adored  System  upside  down. 

DECEMBER. 

Did  they  thus  Err  that  did  so  much  excell  ? 
Then  all  you  vain  Philosophers  farewell, 
Let  all  aspiring  Pedants  learn  this  Task, 
First  to  unlearn  their  foolish  Errors  past. 
Celestial  Dove  !  Enlighten  thou  my  Mind, 
Revoke  thy  Wrath  which  doom'd  me  to  be  blind. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

This  First  Week  in  the  New  Year  may  afford  Great  Wind  and  Storm 
long  and  severe. 

Cloudy  if  not  Wet,  and  Wind  with  Some  Abatement  of  Cold. 

FEBRUARY. 

Pretty  cold  freezing  Nights  followed  with  a  short  storm. 
Let  Travellers  be  upon  their  Guard  to  defend  their  Noses. 

MARCH. 

March  begins  like  March,  worse  than  it  holds  out. 
Cloudy  dirty  drizzly  wet  Weather  with  fogs  &c. 

APRIIv. 

Great  Striving,  which  shall  get  the  day, 
Apollo  me  forbids  to  say. 

MAY. 

Let  the  wise  Merchant,  the  honest  Tradesman,  and  the  careful  Farmer, 
improve  their  Season. 

This  Month  may  End  with  Hot  Weather. 

JUNE. 

Perhaps  a  setled  Rain  with  Thunder. 
K.  GEORGE  II.  began  to  Reign  also. 
More  Thunder  somewhere,  as  was  the  Hurricane  last  Year. 


120  ALMANACK    FOR    1738. 

AUGUST. 

Thunder,  or  I  wonder. 

Some  new  Disease  gets  on  the  Stage 
Which  here  and  there  begins  to  rage. 

Wind,  if  not  a  Storm  perhaps  a  Frost  about  this  Time. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Hot  and  looks  like  Thunder. 

Petty  Attorneys  and  Quack  Doctors  are  like  scabbed  Sheep  among  the 
Flock,  one  Devours  and  t'  other  breeds  the  Rot. 

OCTOBER. 

1?  Votes  for  an  Bast  Wind  and  a  long  Storm. 

Apertio  Portarum^ ,  or  opening  the  Gates  of  Heaven,  which  may  let 
down  plentiful  Rains  on  Barth  before  the  setting  in  of  Winter. 


Kind  READER, 

By  what  follows  I  would  not  have  you  think  that  I  am  a 
Superstitious  Bigot  to  Judicial  Astrology.  But  so  far  as  Astrol 
ogy  is  built  on  the  Effects  and  Influences  of  the  heavenly  Bodies 
on  our  earthly  Bodies,  which  Effects  and  Influences,  being 
observed  by  us,  so  far  (I  think)  Astrology  has  a  rational  and 
phylosophical  Foundation.  This  Earth  is  one  of  the  Planets  in 
the  Soler  System,  and  doubtless  they  all  have  a  mutual  Depen 
dence  upon,  and  Co-operation  with  one  another. 

The  different  Degrees  of  Heat  and  Cold,  surprizing  Resur 
rection  of  the  Plants  in  the  Spring,  the  Beauties  of  Summer, 
Fruitfulness  of  Autumn,  and  Barrenness  of  Winter,  is  the  Con 
sequence  of  the  different  Directions,  Quantities  and  Impulses  of 
the  Sun's  Rays,  which  fall  under  a  mathematical  Calculation. 
The  Full  Moon  faces  the  World  with  so  grand  and  serious  a 
Look,  that  even  Shepherds,  and  Plowmen,  old  Women,  &c.,  are 
not  ignorant  of  its  Effects.  For  the  other  five  Planets,  as  they 
are  in  Respect  of  us,  of  less  Lustre  and  Glory,  so  their  Vertues 
and  Influences  are  not  so  commonly  known,  though  very  great 
and  admirable.  No  doubt  but  their  Radiations  act  upon  us 
according  to  the  strictest  Laws  of  Nature  though  we  are  ignorant 
thereof.  How  their  Influence  is  communicated  is  uncertain  :  if 

1  The  g  $  &  $  is  called  so.     (Opposition  of  Mars  and  Venus.} 


ALMANACK    FOR    1738.  121 

by  an  Effluvia  emitted,  then  the  Force  of  their  Percussion  (like 
all  other  Impulses)  is  as  the  Sine  of  the  Angle  of  Incidence. 
But  we  must  note  the  Effect  and  from  thence  search  for  the 
Cause,  and  argue  not  from  Reason,  but  from  Sense  and  sensible 
Experiments :  hence  when  the  Moon  is  Perige  the  Tides  are 
increased,  but  still  they  will  be  further  increased,  if  at  the  same 
time  she  be  in  Conjunction  with  Saturn  or  Venus  (as  well  as  the 
Sun).  Hence  Saturn  or  Venus  in  Conjunction  with  the  Moon  is 
not  only  a  Sign,  but  a  Cause  of  the  observed  proportionable 
Augmentation  of  the  Tide. 

Astrology  was  at  first  gathered  by  the  Ancients  collecting 
from  Histories  of  the  several  Nations  of  the  World  the  most 
Eminent  and  notable  Changes  that  hapned  therein  in  Respect  of 
Sects,  Empires,  Kingdoms,  Wars,  Famine,  Deluges,  etc.,  together 
with  the  Changes  of  Air  in  Respect  of  Heat,  Cold,  Moisture, 
&c.,  with  the  exact  Time  of  such  Changes,  and  the  true  Pos 
tures  of  the  Constellation  and  Planets  :  as  also  the  Eclipses  and 
Comets  preceding  the  same.  Now  to  pursue  such  a  method  I 
would  observe  two  things  : 

I.  And  First,  the  Winter  past  was  with  us,  even  to  South 
Carolina,  as  cold  and  severe  as  any  in  the  memory  of  this  Age : 
and  by  the  Weekly  News  Letter  we  were  inform'd  of  a  remark 
able    Destruction   of    Fish   and   Water-Fowl  in    many    Places : 
Which  say  Ptolemy,  Coley,  Lilley,  &c.  are  the  Effects  of  Eclipses 
in  the  Watery  Triplicity,  in  the  which  Trigon  the  two  last  (and 
indeed  very  remarkable)  Eclipses  were  celebrated.     One  who 
published  an  Almanack  last  Year  for  Rhode  Island,  by  what  he 
pick'd  out  of  these  (or  some  such  like)  authors  ventured  to  tell 
the  Destruction  of  Fish  and  Fowl,  which,  as  I  mentioned  before, 
came  to  pass. 

II.  Secondly.     There  appeared  a  small  Comet  last  February 
(and  I  think  there  was  but  small  notice  taken  of  it)  it  had  a 
direct  and  swift  motion  and  presently  disappeared,     It  was  first 
seen  in  the  last  Face  of  the  Sign  Pisces,  which  is  of   a  watry 
nature :  what  Floods  and  Inundations  followed  is  fresh  in  the 
memory  of  every  one.     So  much  for  what  is  past. 

There  will  be  a  remarkable  Eclipse  of  the  Sun  for  the  Year 
to  come.  Mercury  is  Lord  of  the  Ascendant  in  the  Time  of  the 
Eclipse,  which  portends  much  pilfering  and  stealing,  if  not 


122  ALMANACK  FOR  1738. 

robbing  on  the  High-way.  But  I  had  no  need  to  have  recourse 
to  Astrology,  for  such  a  prediction  is  Easily  drawn  from  other 
Phaenomena.  I  would  not  have  those  who  are  troubled  with 
the  Itch  of  Stealing,  think  to  excuse  themselves  by  laying  the 
Fault  upon  Mercury,  for  a  worse  than  he  tempts  them  to  such 
villanies.  The  following  lines  I  recommend  to  them  as  a  mon 
itor  to  prevent  the  use  of  the  Halter. 

You  that  Defraud  or  Steal  do  of  the  Devil  borrow, 

And  ere  you  Pay  the  Debt,  'will  cost  you  Grief  &  Sorrow ; 

He's  Surety  for  his  Loan,  your  Souls  they  stand  as  Bail, 

And  if  of  true  Repentance  you  should  chance  to  fail, 

He'll  for  no  formal  writ  of  Scire  Facias  wait, 

When  Death  the  Summons  brings  the  Surety  he  will  take  ; 

And  you  must  pay  the  Cost  in  Everlasting  Pain, 

And  have  the  Principal  eternally  remain 

Uncaucell'd  and  unpaid :  after  a  Million  Year 

The  Debt  will  be  as  big  as  when  you  first  came  there  : 

You  may  weep  Floods  of  Tears,  and  Cheat  and  Steal  no  more ; 

You  never  can  Repent  unless  you  do  restore  : 

For  where  Men  can  and  won't,  Repentance  is  a  Sham, 

One  Six-Pence  so  retain'd  most  certainly  will  damn. 


1738* — We  now  approach  the  very  jovial  period  of  the 
Doctor's  life,  and  his  almanacks  increase  in  interest  from  this  period  to  his 
final  decease.  Whether  he  had  been  held  in  check  heretofore  by  the  pres 
ence  of  his  father,  who  might  have  been  an  exemplar  of  the  stern  morality 
and  rigid  discipline  of  the  Puritan  days,  we  know  not,  but  certain  it  is,  that 
now  and  hereafter,  his  writings  and  selections  fully  justify  all  the  meed  of 
praise  which  Professor  Tyler  has  lavished  on  him. 

No  one  can  fail  to  thoroughly  enjoy  the  productions  of  the  author's 
pen,  even  though  introduced  through  the  very  humble  pages  of  an  alma 
nack.  Neither  are  any  comments  absolutely  required,  to  enable  the  dis 
criminating  reader  to  thoroughly  appreciate  every  syllable  of  the  wit, 
wisdom,  information  and  satire  which  every  page  contains,  and  which  gives 
us  at  this  day  a  more  thorough  insight  to  the  manners  and  customs  of  the 
people,  among  whom  they  circulated  a  century  and  more  agone. 

In  the  salutatory  rhyme  on  the  title,  he  ingeniously  apologizes  for  the 
existence  of  both  Lawyer,  Priest,  and  Doctor,  and  traces  back  in  well 
chosen  lines  their  ancestry  direct  to  the  Eden  affair. 

On  the  next  page  he  proceeds  to  touch  up  the  "Ancient  and  Honorable 
Fraternity  of  Free  and  Accepted  Masons"  according  to  his  humor.  These 
few  lines  of  verse  are  the  first  that  I  have  noticed  in  any  publication  of 


ALMANACK    FOR    1738.  123 

the  kind,  adverting  to  the  institution,  which  had  been  but  lately  introduced 
to  the  Colonists,  through  the  offices  of  Henry  Price,  who  established  the 
first  Lodge  in  New  England,  in  1733. 

Why  the  Doctor  should  have  made  any  allusion  of  the  nature  of  his 
poetic  squib  in  this  instance,  is  not  apparent.  Perhaps  a  Lodge  had  been 
established,  or  visiting  at  the  rival  tavern  of  Gays ;  or  perhaps  he  being 
advised  that  the  habitat  of  the  fraternity  was  generally  at  the  congenial 
inn,  felt  that  his  own  popular  hostelry  had  been  ignored  in  the  founding 
of  altars  about  the  country.  However  he  wrote  it,  and  we  can  only  con 
jecture  why  he  made  such  a  dismal  allusion  to  an  organization,  which  had 
its  early  home  at  the  inns,  taverns,  and  coffee  houses  in  "  Merrie  England," 
which  some  authors  have  characterized  as  a  "pot-house  production,"  which 
Us  eminent  patron  Frederick  the  Great  is  said  to  have  alluded  to  as  a 
"great  nothing,"  and  which,  hailing  at  an  early  day  from  the  "  Theater 
Tavern,"  "The  Devil  at  Temple  Bar,"  "  The  Red  Lion  Inn,"  "  The  Bunch  of 
Grapes,"  and  a  myriad  of  similar  localities,  has  carried  its  humanizing  in 
fluence,  its  charities,  its  social  pleasures,  its  craft  ambitions,  its  petty 
backbitings  and  personal  jealousies  in  the  advance  guard  of  civilization. 
From  its  fecund  womb  have  issued  forth  all  the  varied  forms  of  societies 
and  beneficial  associations,  which  permeate  every  class  of  humanity 
throughout  the  globe. 

As  noted,  it  has  its  little  human  weaknesses  and  foibles,  and  none  more 
enjoy  the  little  battles  of  the  outside  world  against  its  influence,  whether 
by  satire  or  open  attack,  than  the  appreciative  craftsman,  and  none  more 
thoroughly  (though  quietly)  enjoy  a  "center  shot." 

Almost  coeval  with  the  establishment  of  the  "  Ancient  and  Honorable 
Fraternity"  in  America,  the  craft  became  an  object  of  interest  for  the 
satirists,  and  right  well  did  they  use  their  opportunities.  The  location  of 
the  lodges  at  the  taverns  and  coffee  houses  made  a  vulnerable  point  for 
those  who  laughed,  and  particularly  for  those  that  committed  their 
laughter  to  paper. 

It  is  quite  remarkable  that  all  who  have  endeavored  to  trace  the 
genealogy  of  this  time-honored  institution  have  invariably  brought  up  in 
the  "  parlor  of  a  profane  public  house,"  and  all  the  history  anterior  to 
that  period  is  relegated  to  the  speculative  testimony  which  is  based  on 
Masonic  tradition. 

Joseph  Green  (b.  1706),  a  Harvard  graduate  (1726)  and  person  of  humor 
ous  proclivities  was  resident  at  Boston,  about  the  time  when  Masonry 
assumed  definite  shape  in  the  Colonies.  He  employed  his  pen  in  various 
satirical  ways,  and  the  occasion  of  a  parade  of  the  Masonic  Lodge  at 
Boston,  on  one  St.  John's  day  gave  him  a  theme  on  which  he  descanted  in 
very- enjoyable  verse,  and  to  the  merits  of  which  the  most  zealous  brother 
cannot  be  indifferent. 

The  poem  entitled  "  An  Entertainment  for  a  Winter  Evening,"  contains 
the  following : 


124  ALMANACK    FOR    1738. 

"  Come,  goddess,  and  our  ears  regale 
With  a  diverting  Christmas  tale. 
O,  come,  and  in  thy  verse  declare 
Who  are  the  men,  and  what  they  were, 
And  what  their  names,  and  what  their  fame, 
And  what  the  cause  for  which  they  came, 
To  house  of  God  from  house  of  ale, 
And  how  the  parson  told  his  tale ; 
How  they  returned,  in  manner  odd, 
To  house  of  ale,  from  house  of  God." 
>;<  ^  %.  >i-  %•  %•  >£ 

Then  he  touches  up  the  chaplain — the  preacher  on  the  occasion : 

Masons  at  Church  !     Strange  auditory ! 
And  yet  we  have  as  strange  a  story, 
For  Saints,  as  history  attests, 
Have  preached  to  fishes,  birds,  and  beasts. 

^  *  :{j  *  >;<  *  jfc 

So  good  Saint  Francis,  man  of  grace, 
Himself  preached  to  the  braying  race ; 
And  further,  as  the  story  passes, 
Addressed  them  thus — "  My  brother  asses." 

As  the  procession  moves  along,  he  singles  out  some  of  the  more  promi 
nent  brethren,  among  whom  notably  one  Pue ;  he  the  Junior  Warden 
perhaps,  or  some  one  having  immediate  charge  of  the  refreshment  proper, 
a  Master  Adept  in  his  particular  calling,  evidencing  the  true  worshipper 
at  the  shrine  of  Bacchus,  by  his  brilliant  carmine  nose. 

"  Who's  he  comes  next?  'Tis  Pue  by  name, 
Pue  by  his  nose  well  known  to  fame ; 
This,  when  the  generous  juice  recruits, 
Around  a  brighter  radiance  shoots. 
So  on  some  promontory's  height, 
For  Neptune's  sons  the  signal  light 
Shines  fair,  and  fed  by  unctuous  stream 
Sends  off  to  sea  a  livelier  beam." 

(The  full  text  of  this  poem  may  be  found  in  the  Appendix  to  this 
volume.) 

The  verses  this  year  start  out  with  an  Ode  to  the  wondrous  Nervous 
System  of  the  human  frame.  Further  on  he  alludes  to  childish  errors 
which  by  maturer  thought  should  be  thrown  off,  and  then  continuing  in 
rapturous  strain,  he  glorifies  Science  and  investigation  and  the  grand 
results  to  be  derived  therefrom.  In  conclusion,  a.  gloria  is  sung  to  Carte- 
siits,  while  the  disciples  and  the  principles  of  Epicurus  and  Aristotle,  are 
dismissed  to  perdition. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1739.  125 

The  Essay  follows  the  weather  predictions,  and  the  astronomer  pro 
nounces  a  mild  opinion  concerning  the  alleged  truths  of  Judicial  Astrol 
ogy  ;  but  thoroughly  endorses  the  theory  of  Natural  Astrology,  and  his 
belief  in  the  co-operation  of  the  other  planets  with,  and  influence  upon 
each  other.  He  quotes  occurrences  and  incidents  largely  in  support  of 
his  theory,  and  cites  Ptolemy,  Coley,  Lilly,  as  being  the  authorities  from 
whom  some  almanack-makers  draw  their  predictions  of  remarkable  prodi 
gies,  etc. 

In  conclusion,  in  reference  to  a  certain  Eclipse,  when  a  certain  planet 
is  in  the  ascendant,  he  draws  the  line  as  between  Mercury,  and  Satan,  as 
to  the  proper  cause  of  the  effects  to  be  looked  for,  and,  as  might  be 
expected,  closes  with  some  humorous  verses  concerning  the  last  mentioned 
individual,  and  his  proper  children — the  usurers. 

The  humorous  interjections  are  few  but  of  the  usual  quality;  attorneys 
and  quack  doctors  receive  their  usual  medicine  from  the  Doctor. 


THE    ALMANACK     FOR     1739 


By 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 

Printed  by  John  Draper,  for  the  Booksellers  1739. 
Price  Six  Pence  Single  &  Four  Shillings  per  Dozen. 


'  Tis  now  maintained  each  fixed  Star's  a  Sun 
Equal  to  our's,  and  then  suppose  each  one 
Throughout  the  spacious  UNIVERSE  combine, 
And  in  one  awful  Blaze  their  Lustre  join  : 
Tho'  MAN  would  sink  as  Dazled  at  the  Sight 
For  Eyes  made  but  of  Flesh  too  powerful  quite 
Yet  all  the  Light  that  would  hereby  be  made, 
Would  but  resemble  their  CREATOR'S  shade. 


126  ALMANACK    FOR    1739- 

Kind  READER, 

The  following  Poem  being  somewhat  longer  than  I  intended, 
takes  up  Part  of  this  Page  as  well  as  the  Vacancy  at  the  Head 
of  each  Monthly  Page  as  usual. 

The  famous  Thresher,  Stephen  Duck,  invited  by  a  noble  Karl 
to  write  upon  the  SUN,  refused,  because  he  had  read  no  Authors 
on  that  Subject ;  I  might  for  the  same  Reason  have  done  the 
like  ;  but  that  I  believe  any  thing  done  according  to  the  best  of 
my  poor  Endeavours,  will  be  more  agreeable  to  the  Publick 
than  an  entire  Blank. 

To  my  Reader,  who  is  so  censorious  as  to  dispute  the  Legit 
imacy  of  my  Poems,  I  say,  as  they  merit  no  Praise ;  so  I  am 
satisfy'd  they  will  not  be  claim'd  or  father'd  by  any  Body  besides 
my  self,  either  among  the  living  or  dead. 

Dedham,  October  4,  1738.  N.  AMES. 


My  muse  with  Grief  has  dimn'd  her  Virgin  Sight, 

And's  loth  to  sing  of  Phoebus  or  his  Light ; 

To've  sung  my  Spouse  and  only  Son's  Decease1 

Her  Song  had  been  perhaps  a  finish'd  Piece, 

Because  the  Tho'ts  that  roll  within  her  Mind 

Are  unto  Death  &  Tragedies  inclin'd : 

Why  droops  thy  Wing?  Uplift  thy  mournful  Head, 

Heaven's  Glories  View ;  leave  poreing  o're  the  Dead. 

Father  of  Light !  From  thy  bright  Essence  flows 

Light  uncreated,  to  the  Souls  of  those 

Who  in  thy  Works  with  awful  Reverence  pry, 

And  truly  seek  thy  Name  to  glorify ; 

Illumine  me,  lest  my  unskilful  Pen, 

With  vulgar  Strains,  a  lofty  Theme  prophane. 

K'er  thou  unfurld'st  thy  Glories  to  create 

New  Worlds,  and  amply  them  accommodate, 

Thou  didst  the  Broils  of  Chaos  huge  compose ; 

From  dire  Confusion  Harmony  arose  : 

Thy  Word  and  Spirit,  accompany'd  with  Might, 

Summon'd  each  roving  Particle  of  Light 

That  with  the  ill  joyn'd  Seeds  of  all  Things  lay 

Obscure  and  WTaste,  collecting  every  Ray, 

To  form  the  grand  amazing  Globe  that  rules  the  Day 

Dr.  Ames'  first  wife  and  son  had  deceased  in  1738. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1739.  127 

Stupendious  Lamp  !  Thou  wert  the  Persian's  God 
Whose  Foot  Steps  by  the  Light  of  Nature  trod. 
Nor  we  our  selves  of  thee  had  better  known, 
Had  not  a  Light  Superior  on  us  shone. 
He  is  a  God,  said  they  because  'tis  He 
Who  sees  all  Objects,  and  by  whom  all  see. 


JANUARY. 

His  some-resembling  Omnipresence  fills 

The  humble  Valleys  and  aspiring  Hills ; 

Nay  present  through  the  Spaces  infinite,  "j 

For  His  fair  Daughter  first-born  Creature  Light, 

Visits  vast  Worlds  unknown  beyond  the  Ken  of  Sight  __) 

The  rolling  Worlds  to  Him  Obeysance  Pay ; 

Who  all  submit  to  His  Magnetick  Sway. 

FEBRUARY. 

His  Gravity  directs  'em  where  to  role, 

None  from  their  destin'd  Orbits  dare  to  strole, 

With  Glory  crown'd,  superlatively  great, 

In  midst  of  all  these  circling  Orbs  his  Seat. 

Our  Earth,  obsequious  to  his  great  Command,  ~) 

Turns  or  is  turn'd,  whilst  his  all  bounteous  Hand, 

Distributes  Life,  and  vital  Warmth  to  Sea  and  Land.  ) 

MARCH. 

The  numerous  product  of  Dame  Nature's  Womb, 
That  wantonly  exult  in  youthful  Bloom, 
Whether  they  plough  the  Air,  or  Walk,  or  Swim, 
Their  secret  Springs  of  Life  originate  in  him. 
As  he  withdraws  a  little  from  our  Sight, 
WThen  Capricorn's  cold  Tropic  lengthens  Night 

APRIL. 

The  Winds  disturb'd  with  horrid  Murmurs  rise, 
And  mix  the  foamy  Billows  with  the  Skies 
The  Earth  as  Dead,  no  Fruit  nor  Comfort  yields 
Wrinkled  and  fled  's  the  Beauty  of  the  Fields : 
But  when  proud  Aries  ushers  in  the  Spring, 
And  Sol  returns  to  comfort  us  again ; 

MAY. 

The  Earth  revives,  and  cloaths  herself  with  Green, 
And  rich  Embroideries  on  the  Meads  are  seen : 


128  ALMANACK    FOR    1739- 

His  gentle  Rays  Orions  Bands  despoil ; 
And  genial  Warmth  makes  jocund  Nature  smile, 
Unlocks  the  Virgin  Bosom  of  the  Flowers, 
And  Bread  and  Wine  distil  in  April  showers. 

JUNE. 

The  wing'd  Musicians  welcome  him  with  Notes, 
As  Orpheus'  Lyre  were  tuned  in  their  Throats, 
So  charm'd  are  we  their  Harmony  to  hear, 
That  all  our  very  Soul  gets  in  the  Ear. 
When  for  Repose  he  yields  to  shady  Night, 
And  in  his  Ebon  Box  locks  up  the  Light. 

JULY. 

And  Darkness  with  her  sable  Mantle  covers, 
Sweet  stolen  Sports  of  joyful  meeting  Lovers. 
His  starry  Parliament,  those  twinkling  Fires, 
That  set  in  Council  whilst  their  Lord  retires, 
Adorn  the  ample  Canopy  with  Light, 
And  sparkle  on  the  gloomy  Brow  of  Night 

AUGUST. 

Ere  this  bright  Prince  up-lifts  his  Golden  Head, 
From  the  soft  Pillow  of  his  Sea-Green  Bed, 
Aurora  in  her  blooming  Splendor  dress'd, 
Comes  blushing  from  her  Chamber  in  the  East, 
Her  Rosy  Hand  the  dusky  Cloud  adorns, 
That  Iris  painted  Bow  she  almost  scorns. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Enfring'd  with  Gold,  and  Rich  Embroideries  laid; 
Whence  ming'ling  Lights  reflect  a  beautious  Shade. 
All  this  Refulgent  Glory  o'er  his  Head 
Prepar'd,  against  He's  pleas'd  to  quit  his  Bed. 
His  pale  Fac'd  Queen,  who  wore  his  Silver-Light 
And  handed  down  his  Glories  all  the  Night ; 

OCTOBER. 

When  he  comes  forth  declares  her  social  dread, 
And  at  his  glorious  Presence  hides  her  Head. 
The  lesser  Orbs  that  Nightly  Set  and  Rise, 
Yield  up  their  Light  when  he  ascends  the  Skies. 
Nor  needs  their  Light,  with  Glory  all  his  own, 
Rides  through  the  Heav'ns  unrival'd  on  his  Throne. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1739.  1 29 


NOVEMBER. 

Meanwhile  his  Eye  our  rolling  World  surveys, 
And  gilds  its  Mountains  with  his  golden  Rays, 
Fat'ning  with  Grass  and  Vines  each  fruitful  Vale 
To  feed  the  Brute,  and  chearful  Man  regale 
Expells  the  Horrors  of  the  dreary  Night 
Glad'ning  the  dumpish  Soul  with  beamy  Light 
And  courts  with  beauteous  Objects  th'  admiring  Sight. 

DECEMBER. 

He  cloathes  Material  Nature  with  his  Rays ; 
Thus  blest  our  Hemisphere,  the  whilst  he  stays, 
Until  the  Proud,  Ambitious,  Envious  West, 
Too  eager  to  enjoy  this  Princely  Guest, 
Calls  him  to  bed ;  where  ravish'd  from  our  sight, 
He  leaves  us  to  the  solemn  Frowns  of  Night. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

This  Month  from  Janus  took  it's  name  : 
A  Heathen  God  of  ancient  fame. 

Give  me  this  week  for  Elbow  Room  to  guess  in  and  I'll  promise  you 
High  Tides,  Stormy  Winds — plenty  of  Rain  or  Snow. 

FEBRUARY. 

Adversity  makes  a  Man  Wise. 

MARCH. 

Dirty  Weather,  bad  for  Travellers. 

We  listen  for  a  Silken  Peace  or  bloody  War. 

Now  expect  fresh  news  of  Foreign  Commotions. 

APRIL. 

*    9    5       o-    01.    § 

At  this  Convocation  the  Planets  all  meet  and  Vote,  Nemine  Contra- 
dicente  for  Peace  among  the  nations. 

The  rattling  Cannon  echo  thro'  the  Woods. 

MAY. 

Now  lavish  Nature  in  her  best  Attire 
Cloathes  the  gay  Spring,  the  Season  of  Desire. 


130  ALMANACK    FOR    1739- 

JUNK. 

Boreal  climes  are  warm'd,  the  frozen  Pole 
Thaws  with  the  Heat  of  the  Celestial  Coal. 

TULY. 

Remark,  what  happens  now  $  passes  by  Cor.  61. 
Signs  of  N.  E.  Rain  as  Infallible  as  the  Pope. 
DOG  DAYS  begin  &  the  Dog-star  rains  his  Maladies. 
Zeal  has  no  Ears,  but  Slander  has  a  great  many. 

OCTOBER. 

A  Cloak  for  matters  of  Religion  is  easily  found. 
A  Strange  Alteration  in  Affairs  ! 
Without  Money,  without  Credit ! 

NOVEMBER. 

Tho'  the  Plotters  are  rotten 
The  PILOT'S  not  forgotten. 

Now  if  happens  not  to  Thunder 

Then  something  else  will  make  you  wonder 

DECEMBER. 

The  pregnant  Clouds  now  thicken  in  the  Skie  ; 
Sailors  beware,  Euroclydon  is  nigh. 
A  pale  Sun  and  a  threadbare  Earth. 


Sir  Richard  Blackmore  speaks  of  the  Heathen's  being 
bewildred  concerning  the  first  original  and  beginning  of  the 
world  as  follows,  viz  : 

The  Pagan  World  to  Canaan's  Realms  unknown 
Where  Knowledge  reign'd  and  Light  Celestial  shone, 
Lost  by  Degrees  their  Parent  Adam's  name, 
Forgot  their  Stock  and  wonder'd  whence  they  came. 

But  it  seems  to  me,  that  if  we  were  not  favour'd  with  the 
Inspired  History  of  Moses,  we  could  not  by  the  bare  Dictate  of 
Reason  be  of  the  opinion  of  Aristotle  and  some  other  of  the 
Heathen  Philosophers,  namely,  that  the  World  was  ab  eterno. 
The  Chaldeans  who  are  amongst  the  most  ancient  writers  next 


ALMANACK    FOR    1739.  131 

to  Moses,  give  us  an  account  concerning  the  Beginning  of  the 
World,  arid  'tis  probable  the  Tradition  of  so  memorable  a  Thing 
was  not  wholly  lost  to  those  ancient  ages :  and  altho'  they  reckon 
Forty-three  Thousand  Years  from  the  Beginning  of  the  World  to 
the  Time  of  Alexander,  yet  this  Way  of  Computation  is  acknowl 
edged  by  Diadorus  Siculns  and  Plutarch  to  be  meant  of  Lunary 
Years  or  Months,  which  being  reduced  to  Solary  Years  will  fall 
out  to  be  much  about  the  Time  assign 'd  by  Moses  for  the 
Creation. 

But  a  fair  Probability  that  the  World  has  not  been  Eternal  is 
drawn  from  the  Rise  and  Progress  of  Arts  and  Sciences  in  it.  It 
cannot  be  imagined  that  so  busy  and  sagacious  a  creature  as 
Mankind  is,  could  all  of  them  have  lived  an  Infinity  of  Ages 
destitute  of  those  Arts  so  advantageous  for  the  Comfort  and 
Benefit  of  human  Life. 

Seneca  asserts  there  was  not  above  a  Thousand  Years  since 
the  Beginning  of  Arts  and  Sciences  to  the  Time  wherein  he  lived. 
There  is  scarce  any  one  of  them  so  ancient,  but  that  the  Original 
and  first  Inventors  of  them  are  Recorded  in  History. 

Four  Thousand  Years  ago  when  Man  beheld  the  glorious 
Phaenomena  of  the  Heavens,  the  Changes,  Vicissitudes,  and 
various  Positions  of  the  Planets, 

"  Nor  saw  with  how  much  Art  their  windings  ran 
Nor  where  their  regular  Confusion  ended." 

Had  they  been  told  that  these  infinite  Varieties  might  be 
reduced  to  Rule  and  Order,  and  that  in  future  Ages  Men  might 
come  to  understand  the  Laws  of  their  Motions,  the  Nature  of 
their  Orbits,  their  Positions,  Appearances,  and  Distances  from  us 
and  one  another ;  that  we  might  come  to  Predict  their  Settings, 
Risings,  Stations,  Retrogradations,  Eclipses,  &c ;  and  that  too 
almost  to  the  greatest  Precision  we  are  capable  to  distinguish  or 
apprehend  :  they  would  not  have  given  Credit  to  such  infor 
mation. 

The  Arabian  Astronomers  measured  their  Time  by  Hour 
Glasses  of  Water.  Thales  was  the  first  that  could  predict  an 
Eclipse  ;  he  lived  between  five  and  six  hundred  Years  before  the 
Christian  Aera.  Telescopes  were  invented  by  Zechariah  Johji- 
nades,  a  Spectacle  maker  in  Middlcboro  in  Zealand  1590.  He 


132  ALMANACK    FOR    1739- 

presented  one  of  two  Glasses  to  Prince  Maurice.  Galileo  pur 
sued  the  Hint,  and  made  several  whereby  he  first  discovered  four 
Planets  moving  constantly  round  Jupiter  from  thence  usually 
called  his  Satellites. 

And  thus  every  one  improving  on  the  Observation  of  his 
Predecessor,  till  all  the  Phaenomena  were  compleatly  gathered, 
and  then  applying  the  Science  of  Geometry  and  Numbers  to 
investigate  their  Orbits,  their  Distances,  the  Laws  of  their 
motions,  their  Natures,  and  their  Causes,  till  now  in  our  Day, 
Astronomy  is  brought  almost  to  the  highest  Pinnacle  of  per 
fection. 


IVotes  OH  I73<9» — The  Glorious  Sun  is  the  burden  of  the  poet's 
rhyme  this  year,  and  the  author  apologizes  for  his  treatment  of  the 
subject  by  quoting  the  renowned  authority  Mr.  Stephen  Duck. 

Concerning  the  authenticity  of  the  poems,  and  the  responsibility  for 
them,  the  Doctor  modestly  disclaims  all  merit  for  them,  but  boldly 
announces  himself  as  the  sole  father  thereof. 

In  verse  he  announces  the  recent  decease  of  his  wife  and  son,  and  then 
proceeds  with  the  theme  of  the  poem  and  monthly  verses,  which  are  very 
creditable  and  readable. 

The  Essay  is  a  model  dissertation  concerning  the  age  of  the  world,  and 
the  varied  opinions  on  the  subject  through  all  periods  from  Moses  down 
to  the  "  Dedham  astronomer;"  concluding  with  a  brief  sketch  of  the 
invention  of  telescopes,  and  the  development  of  astronomical  art. 

The  monthly  squibs  continue  pertinent,  amusing,  and  of  maintained 
interest.  The  gunpowder  plot  receives  its  particular  and  characteristic- 
couplet,  and  Religious  matters,  a  cloak. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1740.  133 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR    1740 


BY  NATHANAEI,  AMES. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 

Printed  by  John  Draper,  for  the  Booksellers,  1740. 
Price  Six  Pence  single,  &  Four  Shillings  per  Dozen, 


Thro'  Worlds  unnumber'd  tho'  the  GOD  be  known, 

'  Tis  our's  to  trace  him  only  in  our  own. 

He  who  thro'  vast  Immensity  can  pierce, 

See  Worlds  on  Worlds  compose  one  Universe, 

Observe  how  System  into  System  runs  ? 

WThat  other  Planets,  and  what  other  Suns  ? 

What  vary'd  Being  peoples  every  Star  ? 

May  tell  why  Heav'n  made  all  things  as  they  are. 


What  of  Poetry  I  present  the  Publick  this  Year  is  partly  trans- 
scribed  from  the  works  of  the  learned  Alexander  Pope,  Esq.  I 
use  two  Lines  of  my  own  in  July  to  introduce  the  four  following 
from  Sir  Richard  Blackmore,  being  an  elegant  discription  of  a 
Thunder  Cloud  which  we  so  frequently  behold  at  that  Season. 

The  following  Vision  of  Blackstorts  Revival  being  a  sudden 
Thought  wrhich  occur'd  not  many  Days  before  I  delivered  my 
Copy  to  the  Press.  You  may  therefore  only  Expect  something 
that  may  serve  to  stimulate  the  Ideas  of  the  Ingenious  to  make 
a  more  accurate  improvement  of  such  a  Thought :  This  Black- 
ston  before  the  Settlers  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  arrived  in  New 
England,  dwelt  in  a  lonely  Cottage,  on  a  neck  of  Land,  from 
him  call'd  Blackstort s  Point,  and  by  the  Indians  Shawmut,  which 
is  since  become  the  Metropolis  of  New  England,  and  bare  the 
noted  name  of  Boston, 

Dedham,  Octob.  2,  1739.  N.  AMES. 


134  ALMANACK  FOR  1740. 

A  VISION  OF  BLACKSTON'S  REVIVAL. 

Last  Night  our  late  Chronology  I  read, 
Of  noted  Men  that  have  long  since  been  dead, 
And  weary  laid  the  Book  down  by  my  thoughtful  Head. 
Our  former  Days  was  all  my  artless  theme, 
And  Blackston  stood  before  me  in  a  Dream ; 
From  his  Lethargick  Vault  I  saw  him  rise, 
And  shake  the  Dust  from  off  his  long-clos'd  Eyes  ; 
He  sought  to  find  his  ancient  lonely  Dome. 
But  Time  had  chang'd  the  Face  of  his  lov'd  Home. 
Then  sigh'd  and  said  "  If  ever  I  liv'd  here, 
"  Trees  were  as  Men,  Now  Men  as  Trees  appear ! 
"  Where  that  most  lofty  Spire1  rears  up  his  Head 
"  There  stood  a  Pine,  and  here  an  Elm  once  spread, 
"  Here  nought  but  Owles  and  Satyrs  us'd  to  meet, 
"  Now  Men  in  Coaches  rattle  through  a  Street. 
"  Of  Houses  built  magnificent  and  fine  ! 
"  I  built  the  first!  they  cop)-'d  not  from  mine. 
'•  Behold  that  Green2 where  yonder  Boys  do  play 
"  The  prowling  Wolf  there  nightly  lurk'd  for  Prey, 
"  Whose  Howl  long  frighted  all  Mankind  but  me,  away. 
"  Perhaps  I'm  out !  might  not  the  pious  Care 
"  Of  some  dear  Friend  my  sacred  Dust  transfer 
"  To  native  Albion  Soil,  from  whence  I  came, 
"Where  since  I've  slept — here  I  awake  again, 
"  And  what  I  now  behold  some  Town  of  ancient  Fame  ! 
"  Things  alter'd  so  !  Lord,  where  am  I,  he  cry'd  ! 
"  No  Face  I  know  !" — and  willing  he  re-dy'd. 
Then  I  awoke,  and  from  th'  instructive  Scene, 
Infer'd  what  might  be  from  what  there  has  been. 
The  tawny  Pagans  have  forsook  their  Seats 
From  Savage  Deserts  rise  our  green  Retreats. 
The  shagged  Bear  lodg'd  in  the  Silvan  Scenes 
Most  sternly  guarded  all  the  purling  Streams, 
From  tender  Lambs  who  now  enjoy  those  Floods 
And  fearless  ramble  through  the  harmless  Woods, 
As  our  bright  Sun  marks  out  each  rolling  Year, 
Great  Britain's  Glory  buds  and  blossoms  here. 
Ye  Gods  in  Rome  what  have  ye  more  to  do  ? 
Elysium  in  New  England  waits  for  you.3 

1  South  Church.         2  The  Common. 

3  Among  the  very  peculiar  people  which  the  discovery  of  the  New 
World  induced  to  emigrate  to  New  England  none  stand  out  more  promi 
nently  by  reason  of  their  peculiarities  and  opposite  characteristics  than 
Mr.  William  Blackstone,  the  subject  of  the  Doctor's  poetic  thoughts,  and 


ALMANACK  FOR  1740.  135 

JANUARY. 

Behold  the  Groves  that  shine  with  Silver  Frost, 
Their  Beauty  wither'd  and  their  Verdure  lost. 
No  grateful  Dews  descend  from  Ev'ning  Skies, 
Nor  Morning  Odours  from  the  Flowers  arise, 
No  rich  Perfumes  refresh  the  fruitful  Field, 
Nor  fragrant  Herbs  their  native  Incense  yield. 

FEBRUARY. 

Heaven  from  all  Creatures  hides  the  Book  of  Fate, 
All  but  the  Page  prescribed  their  present  State. 
From  Brutes  what  Men,  from  Men  what  Spirits  know, 
Or  who  could  suffer  Being  here  below  ? 
Thee  Lamb  thy  Riot  dooms  to  bleed  to  Day, 
Had  he  thy  Reason,  would  he  Skip  and  play  ? 

MARCH. 

Pleased  to  the  last,  he  crops  the  flowery  Food 
And  licks  the  Hand  just  rais'd  to  shed  his  Blood. 
Oh,  blindness  to  the  Future !  Kindly  given 
That  each  may  fill  his  Circle  mark'd  by  Heaven 
Who  sees  with  equal  Eye,  as  God  of  all 
A  Hero  perish,  or  a  Sparrow  fall . 


Master  Thomas  Morton  the  hero  of  the  Maypole  of  Merry  Mount.  The 
former  lived  at  Shawmut,  having  settled  there  about  1623,  and  is  accredited 
as  the  first  settler  and  founder  of  the  present  City  of  Boston.  He  lived 
the  life  of  a  recluse ;  preferred  solitude  to  society,  and  having,  in  common 
with  the  majority  of  the  first  comers,  pronounced  religious  peculiarities, 
his  theological  notions  inclined  him  to  solitaire  and  he  played  it  alone. 
He  left  England  because  "  he  did  not  like  the  Lord-bishops  "  there,  and 
he  isolated  himself  at  Shawmut  because  he  had  "  no  love  for  the  I/ord- 
brethren  in  New  England."  When  neighbors  and  religion  began  to  be 
obtrusive,  and  interfered  with  his  comfort,  he  emigrated  to  peaceful  Rhode 
Island,  and  upon  the  Seekonk  river  he  became  the  first  settler  in  that 
Colony  and  there  died  about  1675. 

Master  Thomas  Morton's  more  social  qualities  are  set  forth  in  the 
following  extract  from  a  paper  read  before  the  Western  Reserve  Historical 
Society  at  Cleveland,  Ohio,  in  January,  1887. 

"  Two  years  after  the  arrival  of  the  first  consignment  of  Puritan  emi 
grants,  a  ray  of  cheerfulness  appeared  about  to  light  up  the  social  sky  of 
New  England.  In  1622,  that  jovial  limb  of  the  law,  Master  Thomas  Mor 
ton  arrived,  and  it  would  have  seemed  that  his  advent  should  have  in  a 
measure  dispelled  the  gloom  which  had  pervaded  Plymouth  society,  but 


136  ALMANACK    FOR    1740. 


APRIL. 

Horses,  (them  say'st)  and  Asses,  men  may  try, 
And  ring  suspected  Vessels  e'er  they  buy, 
But  Wives,  a  random  Choice,  untry'd  they  take, 
They  dream  in  Courtship,  and  in  Wedlock  wake. 
Then,  nor  till  then,  the  Veil's  removed  away, 
And  all  the  WToman  glares  in  open  Day. 

MAY. 

Hear  how  the  Birds  on  ev'ry  bloomy  Spray, 
With  joyous  Musick  wake  the  dawning  Day. 
The  Turf  with  rural  Dainties  now  is  crown'd, 
While  opening  Blooms  diffuse  their  Sweets  around 
For  see !  the  gath'ring  Flocks  to  shelter  tend, 
And  from  the  Pleiads  fruitful  Showers  descend. 


"  I  Give  and  I  devise,"  (old  Euclio  said 

and  sigh'd)  "  My  Lands  and  Tenements  to  Ned" 
"  Your  Money,  Sir  ?  My  Money,  Sir !  What  all  ?  " 
"  Why — if  I  must — (then  wept)  I  give  it  Paul" 
"  The  Manor,  Sir  ?  The  Manor !  hold,  he  cry'd," 
"  Not  that — I  cannot  part  with  that" — and  dy'd. 

JULY. 

Who  trembles  not  to  view  the  rising  Cloud 

When  angry  Jove  plays  his  Artillery  loud? 

What  formidable  Gloom  their  Faces  wear ! 

How  wide  their  front !    How  deep  &  black  their  Rear ! 

How  do  their  threat'ning  Heads  each  other  throng ! 

How  slow  the  crouding  Legions  move  along! 

alas,  how  often  our  best  intentions  bring  forth  but  Hesperian  fruit. 
Thomas  undertook  a  settlement  in  the  neighborhood  from  which  it  was 
his  intent  that  all  bilious,  sad-countenanced  individuals  should  be  forever 
banished.  He  succeeded  for  awhile — drove  a  thriving  trade  with  the 
natives,  bartered  them  powder  and  ball,  conversation  water,  and  muskets — 
opened  a  military  school  in  which  to  teach  the  Indian  idea  how  to  shoot, 
and  endeavored  according  to  his  peculiar  notion  to  bring  the  savage  to  the 
highest  state  of  civilization  by  the  shortest  possible  route.  But  Brother 
Morton's  school  was  as  much  too  far  advanced  as  the  academy  of  sadness  at 
Plymouth  was  too  antiquated,  to  bring  about  a  fellow-feeling  between  the 
"  salvages  "  and  the  new-comers.  There  arose  however,  quite  providen 
tially,  a  man  who  was  equal  to  the  occasion,  and  who  took  hold  of  the 
subject — which  subject  was  Morton — in  a  manner  calculated  to  definitely 


ALMANACK    FOR    1740.  137 

AUGUST. 

The  Wife  of  Bath  who  was  engag'd  to  a  fifth  before 
\xtrjourth  Husbands  Death. 

It  pleased  the  Lord  to  take  my  Spouse  at  last, 
I  tore  my  Gown,  I  soil'd  my  Locks  with  Dust, 
And  beat  my  Breasts  as  wretched  Widows — must. 
Before  my  Face  my  Handkerchief  I  spread, 
To  hide  the  Floods  of  Tears  I  did— not  shed. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Now  golden  Fruits  on  loaded  Branches  shine, 
And  grateful  Clusters  swell  with  Floods  of  Wine, 
But  Flowers  decay  forsaken  by  the  Spring : 
And  Birds  now  left  by  Summer  cease  to  sing. 
The  Trees  now  lade  as  Autumn-Heat  remove, 
And  dying  Insects  mourn  in  every  Grove. 

OCTOBER. 

What  e'er  the  Passion,  Knowledge,  Fame  or  Pelf, 
Not  one  will  change  his  Neighbor  with  himself. 
The  Learn'd  is  happy,  Nature  to  Explore ; 
The  Fool  is  happy,  that  he  knows  no  more ; 
The  Rich  is  happy,  in  the  Plenty  given ; 
The  Poor  contented  with  the  Care  of  Heaven. 

NOVEMBER. 

Man  feeds  the  Animal  he  dooms  his  Feast, 
And  till  he  Ends  the  Being,  makes  it  blest, 
Which  sees  no  more  the  Stroke,  or  feels  the  Pain, 
Than  favour'd  Man  by  touch  Aetherial  stain. 
The  Creature  had  his  Feast  of  Life  before  ; 
Thou  too  must  perish  when  thy  Feast  is  o'er. 

settle  the  difficulty.  John  Endicott,  "  the  Puritan  of  Puritans,"  was 
conveniently  at  hand,  and  immediately  proceeded  through  Mr.  Morton 
and  his  arrangements.  Captain  Standish  assisted  also,  and  despite  Mr. 
Morton's  resistance,  the  banners  of  those  who  "  were  to  pour  sunshine 
over  New  England's  rugged  hills  and  scatter  flower  seeds  throughout  the 
soil,"  were  trailed  in  the  dust,  the  May  pole  was  cast  down,  the  pastimes 
of  Merrie  England  were  abolished,  the  name  of  Merry  (Ma-re)  Mount  was 
obliterated ;  salt,  for  aught  we  know,  was  sown  on  the  spot,  afterward  to 
be  known  as  Mount  Dagon.  The  sun  of  merriment  and  good  cheer  had 
set,  and  jaundice  reigned  supreme  among  a  people  where  the  whipping 
post,  the  stocks  and  the  pillory  were  considered  more  congenial  diver- 


138  ALMANACK  FOR  1740. 

DECEMBER. 

Nor  Fame  I  slight,  nor  for  her  Favours  call ; 
She  comes  unlook'd  for,  if  she  comes  at  all — 
Then  teach  me,  Heav'n !  to  scorn  the  guilty  Bays. 
Drive  from  my  Breast  that  wretched  Lust  of  Praise, 
Unblemish'd  let  me  live,  or  die  unknown, 
Oh,  grant  an  honest  Fame,  or  grant  me  none. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

ym 

Sol  in  Aquarius,  now  portends 
That  Grandfather  Cronos  will  burn  his  Shins. 

FEBRUARY. 

Politicians  encrease  daily. 

While  Lawyers  get,  the  People  lose. 

How  raving  Mad  are  Men  big  with  Conceit. 

If  Love  does  bide  a  multitude  of  Failings 
It  creates  a  multitude  of  Jealousies. 

MARCH. 

If  these  be  March  Winds,  'tis  as  bad  as  January. 
There's  110  Credit,  even  for  Honesty. 
Great  Expectations  frustrated. 
March,  this  year,  ends  like  a  Lamb. 

APRIL. 

This  is  the  morning  of  the  Year 
The  awaken'd  Roses  forth 
From  their  Buds  do  sprout 
The  Whip-poor-wills  are  come 
To  bid  you  plant. 


Fine  Evenings  for  Young  Virgins  to  seek  their  Lovers. 
'  Tis  a  mistake  to  say 
(instead  of  Is)  this  month  you  MAY. 

JUNE. 

Some  strange  occurrences. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1740.  139 


Now  every  Plant  that  drinks  the  Morning  Dew 
Great  Douglass1  is  search'd  out  &  known  to  you. 

Kicks  off  the  Cloaths  and  lies  naked  all  Night. 


AUGUST. 

The  Man  dreams  of  Pleasure,  but  finds  Pain. 

A  good  Conscience  is  a  refreshing  Cordial. 

Many  are  the  Storms  that  rage  within  and  without. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Cuckold,  thou  so  ingrateful  art  ! 
as  not  to  thank  thy  Maker. 
Keep  the  look-out,  a  Storm's  at  Hand. 

OCTOBER. 
The  Old  Complaint  —  Hard  Times. 

Brave  F  —  sk  thy  Dogs  the  trembling  Deer  pursues 
And  smells  his  Footsteps  in  the  tainted  Dews. 

* 

NOVEMBER. 

Now  for  the  Old  Plot,  the  POPE  goes  to  Pot 

The  curst  Pope  stands  in  the  Way,  or  I  had  told  you  the  Day. 

What  Heaven  decrees,  no  Prudence  can  prevent. 

DECEMBER. 

Stewed  Quaker  now  is  better  than  Presbyterian. 
Freckled  Shins  &  ruby  Noses  before  a  Fire. 

1  Our  ingenious  Dr.  Douglass,  who  spends  one  Day  in  the  Week  during 
the  Summer  Season,  in  search  of  the  Plants  that  grow  among  us. 

NOTE.  —  WIWJAM  DOUGLASS  was  a  native  of  Scotland,  a  skilful  physi 
cian,  educated  in  Paris  and  Leyden.  He  came  to  Boston  about  1718,  and 
as  late  as  1721  was  the  only  regularly  graduated  physician  in  Boston. 
He  died  Oct.  21,  1752,  aged  57  years.  He  led  the  opposition  to  Dr.  Zabdiel 
Boylston  and  his  practice  of  inoculation,  was  a  versatile  writer,  could 
calculate  eclipses  and  published  an  almanack  for  1743  and  1744  under  the 
title  of  Mercnrius  Novanglicanus.  He  had  a  taste  for  natural  history, 
was  an  excellent  botanist,  and  some  one  has  said  that  "  he  was  always 
positive,  and  sometimes  accurate."  One  writer  describes  him  as  a  "  man 
of  extensive  reading  and  varied  information,  heavily  overcast  by  prodigi 
ous  egotism,  and  a  morose  and  ugly  spirit."  He  wrote  "A  Summary, 


140  ALMANACK  FOR  1740. 

Who  before  the  Great  Sir  Isaac  Newton  did  behold  the  Wisdom 
of  the  Creator,  in  that  he  has  bestowed  on  Matter  such  a  property 
as  that  every  Particle  thereof  throughout  the  Creation,  has  a 
Tendency  towards  every  other  Particle.  And  this  Gravity  of  all 
Bodies  is  observ'd  manifestly  to  decrease  in  Proportion  of  the 
Square  of  their  distance  reciprocally ;  that  is,  at  twice  their  Dis 
tance  their  Force  is  but  one  fourth  of  what  it  was  at  a  single 
Distance,  and  but  a  ninth  at  thrice  the  Distance,  etc. 

What  but  infinite*  Wisdom  could  contrive  that  this  simple 
gravitating  Power  should  become  the  Cement  (as  'twere)  of  the 
whole  Creation  ?  On  this  Account  it  is  that  not  only  a  Drop  of 
Water  is  round,  but  that  the  Earth,  and  all  the  planetary  Worlds, 
are  of  a  globular  Figure,  and  do  not  crumble  to  Pieces  like  a 
handful  of  dry  Dust,  in  their  rapid  Motions,  as  they  revolve  about 
the  Sun,  the  Center  of  their  respective  Orbits. 

The  projectile  Motion  of  the  Planets  would  carry  them  away 
in  infinite  Spaces,  and  they  would  forever  loose  the  Light  and 
Benefit  of  their  glorious  Sun,  if  they  were  not  detained  and 
bridled  by  this  gravitating  Power.  The  wise  Creator  has  given 
a  projectile  Motion  to  each  Planet,  Equal  to  what  the  Gravity  of 
the  same  Planet  does  require,  to  bring  this  rectilinear  Impulse 
to  such  a  Curve  as  describes  a  Circle,  so  near  as  that  their  Orbits 
are  not  very  Excentrical.  And  by  this  Contrivance  in  Nature, 
the  Creator  makes  good  his  Promise,  Gen.  8,  22 :  While  the  Earth 

Historical  and  Political,  of  the  first  planting  &c.  of  the  British  Settle 
ments  in  North  America"  printed  in  numbers,  the  first  of  which  was 
issued  in  1747. 

The  town  of  Douglass,  Mass.,  was  named  for  him,  in  consideration  of 
his  giving  to  the  inhabitants  thereof  ^"500  (old  tenor]  for  a  fund  for  a  free 
school.  He  also  promised  a  bell  to  the  center  school,  and  ^"50  per  year  for 
seven  years  for  the  support  of  the  ministry,  but  the  last  two  promises  were 
never  fulfilled. 

Though  continually  in  some  controversy,  he  was  from  all  accounts  a 
man  of  much  influence  as  a  physician.  An  essay  of  his  entitled  "  Practi 
cal  History  of  a  new  epidemic,  eruptive,  miliary  Fever,  ivhich  prevailed  in 
Boston  in  the  years  1735  and  1736,"  was  published  in  1736.  (This  disease 
was  probably  what  we  now  know  as  diphtheria.)  This  essay  was  re- 
published  (1825)  in  the  "  New  England  Journal  of  Medicine  and  Surgery, 
with  an  editorial  note  that  "it  has  been  pronounced  by  competent  judges 
one  of  the  best  works  extant  upon  the  subject  of  which  it  treats." 


ALMANACK    FOR    1740.  141 

remaineth,  Seed-time  and  Harvest,  and  Cold  and  Heat,  and  Sum 
mer  and  Winter,  and  Day  and  Night,  shall  not  cease, 

But  I  cannot  pretend  to  give  my  Reader  an  idea  of  this 
Newtonian  Philosophy  in  a  single  Page,  and  shall  therefore  con 
clude  with  the  following  Lines  of  the  Poet  concerning  this 
incomparable  Man. 

Superiour  Beings,  when  of  late  they  saw 

A  mortal  Man  unfold  all  Nature's  Law, 

Adniir'd  such  Wisdom  in  an  Earthly  Shape, 

And  shew'd  a  NEWTON  as  we  shew  an  Ape. 

Could  he  whose  Rules  the  whirling  Comets  bind, 

Describe  or  fix  one  Movement  of  the  Mind  ? 

Who  saw  the  Stars,  here  rise,  and  there  descend, 

Explain  his  own  Beginning,  or  his  End  ? 

Alas,  what  Wonder  !    Man's  superiour  Part 

Uncheck'd  may  rise,  and  climb  from  Art,  to  Art. 


Notes  on  1740. — There  now  appears  more  variety  in  the  body  of 
the  almanack,  but  the  salutatory  on  the  title  page  is  of  the  same  general 
tendency  as  that  of  preceding  years. 

The  Doctor  makes  an  acknowledgment  of  the  use  of  other's  poetical 
productions  this  year,  and  transcribes  largely  from  Alexander  Pope,  and 
his  favorite  Sir  Richard  Blackmore. 

A  very  interesting  elaboration  of  a  passing  thought  from  the  Doctor's 
pen  entitled  a  "  Vision  of  BI<ACKSTON'S  Revival,"  occupies  the  opening 
pages.  It  is  quaint  in  conception,  and  extols  the  glory  of  Great  Britain 
and  the  colonies  of  New  England. 

The  selections  (as  noted  above)  for  the  head  of  each  monthly  page  are 
characteristic — and  are  varied  this  year  by  an  injection  of  humorous 
remarks  with  which  Pope  or  Blackmore  had  evidently  but  little  to  do — 
note  June  and  August  as  instances. 

The  year  concludes  with  an  essay  on  the  discovery  of  the  attraction  of 
gravitation  by  Newton,  adapted  to  the  understanding  of  the  most  humble 
intellect,  closing  with  a  poetical  offering  to  the  "incomparable  philosopher.'' 

The  monthly  humor  in  the  weather  column  still  bubbles.  Lawyers 
receive  a  gentle  prodding.  The  course  of  true  love  is  hinted  at.  The 
local  botanist,  Dr.  Douglass,  is  immortalized.  Good  "  corn  weather  "  is 
predicted  for  July.  Private  matters  in  August.  An  allusion  to  a  now 
extinct  horned  animal  is  noted  in  September.1  A  local  Nimrod  is  men 
tioned  in  October.  The  "  Old  Plot "  in  November,  and  concluding  with 
"  Stewed  Quaker  "  in  midwinter. 

:At  least  the  identity  is  lost  as  far  as  the  ancient  title  is  concerned. 


142  ALMANACK    FOR    1741. 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR    1741 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 
Printed  "by  John  Draper,  for  the  Booksellers,  1741. 


Time  is  the  effect  of  Motion,  born  a  Twin, 

And  with  the  World  did  equally  begin  ; 

Time  like  a  Stream  that  hastens  from  the  Shore, 

Flies  to  an  Ocean  where  'tis  known  no  more. 

All  must  be  swallow'd  in  this  endless  Deep 

And  Motion  rest  in  everlasting  Sleep. — Dryd.  Ovid. 


COURTEOUS  READER. 

The  Verses  over  each  monthly  Page  I  have  again  this  Year 
transcribed  from  several  ingenious  Authors  ;  but  what  follows  in 
this  Page,  and  the  Essay  on  the  Microscope  I  offer  you  as  some 
thing  of  my  own,  not  borrowed  nor  stolen  :  since  nothing  that  I 
can  say  will  recommend  my  own  Performances  to  you,  I  desire 
you  would  be  pleased  to  take  them  as  some  Men  take  their  Wives, 
for  better  or  for  worse :  some  Men,  I  say,  for  other  some  there 
are,  who  take  them  for  Better  and  they  prove  altogether  Worse ; 
but  this  is  a  Digression,  and  if  as  beautiful,  as  true,  I  hope  you 
will  forgive  your  humble  Servant, 

N.  AMES. 


To  the  Scoffers  at  Mr.  WHITEFIELD'S  Preaching. 

If  while  you  hear  him,  you  can  mock  him  too, 
Attend  to  me,  I've  something  here  for  you ; 
With  hardn'd  old  Caligula  prepare 
To  mock  the  mighty  THUNDER  of  the  Air, 
Prepare  an  Engine  now,  (for  sure  you  can, 
Since  Thunder  once  was  mimicked  by  Man} 
To  show  the  World  your  Mind  is  mighty  great 
And  Flash  for  Flash,  and  Crack  for  Crack  repeat : 


ALMANACK  FOR  1741.  143 

Go  forth  into  the  Field,  but  chuse  a  Day, 

When  Heav'ns  Artillery  begins  to  play, 

As  as  th'  embattled  Clouds  together  throng, 

Whose  gloomy  Terrors,  slowly  march  along ; 

Erect  your  Standard,  cast  at  them  your  Byes, 

Stretch  forth  your  Hand,  defy  'em  as  they  rise ; 

And  when  they  all  come  cent'ring  o'er  your  Head, 

Then  play  the  Man,  Disdain  to  be  afraid ; 

And  as  the  crooked  Streams  burst  from  the  Cloud, 

Whose  Thunder  others  terrifies  aloud, 


Then  play  your  Engine,  with  sincere  disdain, 


And  as  Heaven  Thunders,  answer  Heav'n  again 
Do  thus  !    and  then  indeed  to  you  I'll  say 
Come,  mighty  Hero'ck  Scoffer,  come  away ; 
And  hear,  and  Scoff,  for  you  shall  nobly  shine, 
In  hardened  Impudence,  the  Victory  is  thine. 


JANUARY. 

Behold  yon  Mountains  hoary  Height 
Made  higher  with  new  Mounts  of  Snow, 
Again  behold  the  Winters  weight 
Oppress  the  lab'ring  Woods  below ; 
And  Streams  with  Icy  Fetters  bound 
Benum'd  and  Cramp'd  to  solid  Ground. 
With  well-heap'd  Logs  dissolve  the  Cold, 
And  feed  the  genial  Heat  with  Fires ; 
Produce  the  Wine  that  makes  us  bold, 
And  sprightly  Wit  and  Love  inspires : 

Dryd.  Nor. 

FEBRUARY. 

Nobility  of  Blood 

Is  but  a  glitt'ring  and  fallacious  good  : 

The  Noble  Man  is  he  whose  noble  Mind 

Is  fill'd  with  inbred  Worth,  unborrow'd  from  his  Kind. 

The  King  of  Heaven  was  in  a  Manger  laid 

And  took  his  Earth  but  from  an  humble  Maid  : 

Then  what  can  Birth  on  mortal  Man  bestow, 

Since  Floods  no  higher  than  their  Fountains  Flow? 

We  who  for  Name  and  empty  Honours  strive, 

Our  true  Nobility  from  him  derive. 


144  ALMANACK  FOR  1741. 


MARCH. 

Your  Ancestors,  who  puff  your  Mind  with  Pride, 

And  vast  Estates  to  mighty  Titles  ty'd 

Did  not  your  Honour,  but  their  own  advance ; 

For  Vertue  comes  not  by  Inheritance  : 

If  you  tralin'ate  from  your  Fathers  Mind 

What  are  you  else  but  of  a  Bastard  kind  ? 

Do  as  your  great  Progenetors  have  done 

And  by  your  Virtues  prove  your  self  their  Son. 

APRIL. 

In  this  soft  season  (let  me  dare  to  Sing) 

The  World  was  hatched  by  Heaven's  Imperial  King 

In  Prime  of  all  the  Year,  and  Holidays  of  Spring. 

Then  did  the  New  Creation  first  appear, 

Nor  other  was  the  Tenor  of  the  Year ; 

When  laughing  Heav'n  did  the  great  Birth  attend 

And  Eastern  Winds  their  Wintry  Breath  suspend, 

Then  Sheep  first  saw  the  SUN  in  open  Field, 

And  Savage  Beasts  were  sent  to  stock  the  Wilds  ; 

MAY. 

And  golden  Stars  flew  up  to  light  the  Skies 

And  Man's  relentless  Race  from  Strong  Quarries  rise. 

Nor  cou'd  the  tender  new  Creation  bear 

Th'  excessive  Heats  or  Coldness  of  the  Year ; 

But  Chil'd  by  Winter,  or  by  Summer  fir'd, 

The  middle  temper  of  the  Spring  requir'd  : 

When  Warmth  and  Moisture  did  at  once  abound, 

And  Heaven's  Indulgence  brooded  on  the  Ground. 

JUNE. 

To  me  your  Armies  losses  might  be  laid 
Cou'd  I  cure  Sickness,  or  cou'd  make  'em  Bread. 
Hard  Fate  of  Heroes,  who  from  Battle  come, 
To  fall  by  Cowards,  and  their  Arts  at  Home. 
These  may  their  Princes,  and  their  People  guard, 
If  others  service  you  like  mine  reward. 
For  Who  for  Victory,  or  Fame  will  Strive, 
To  Die  like  Traytors,  or  like  Slaves  to  Live  ? 
This  the  fair  Crop,  the  Victors  Harvest  brings 
The  common  Gratitude  of  jealous  Kings. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1741.  145 

JULY. 

'  Tis  now  Tempestuous  Storms  o'erspread  the  Skies, 
In  Whose  dark  Bowels  in-born  Thunder  lies ; 
The  Wat'ry  Vapors  numberless  conspire 
To  smother  and  oppress  th'  imprison'd  Fire ; 
Which  thus  collected,  gathers  greater  Force, 
Breaks  out  in  Flames,  and  with  impetuous  course 
From  the  Clouds  gaping  Womb  in  Lightning  flies, 
Flashes  in  Ruddy  Streaks  along  the  Skies. 

AUGUST. 

Eternity  no  Parent  does  admit, 

But  on  its  self  did  first  its  self  beget, 

A  Gulph  whose  large  extent  no  bounds  engage 

A  still-beginning  never-ending  Age. 

ETERNITY  that  boundless  Race, 

Which  TIME  himself  can  never  run, 

(  Swift  as  he  flies  with  an  unweary  Pace  ; ) 

Which  when  ten  thousand  thousand  Years  are  done, 

Is  still  the  same,  and  still  to  be  begun. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Since  every  Man  who  lives  is  born  to  die 

And  none  can  boast  sincere  felicity, 

With  equal  Mind  what  happens  let  us  bear 

Nor  joy,  nor  grieve  to  much  for  things  beyond  our  Care. 

L/ike  Pilgrims  to  th'  appointed  Plaqe  we  tend 

The  Worlds  an  Inn,  and  Death  the  Journey's  end. 

Ev'n  KINGS  but  play,  and  when  their  part  is  done: 

Some  other  worse  or  better  mount  the  Throne. 

OCTOBER. 

Boreas  now  designing  envious  War 

Musters  his  swift-wing'd  Legions  in  the  Air 

And  now  for  sure  Destruction  marches  forth 

With  the  Cold  Forces  of  the  Snowy  North. 

The  verdant  Walks  their  charming  Aspect  lose 

And  Full  Ripe  Fruit  drop  from  their  wither'd  Boughs  ; 

Flowers  lose  their  virgin  Blushes  now  and  die, 

Still  in  the  Fields  some  scattered  Beauties  ly. 

NOVEMBER. 

Time  sensibly  all  Things  impairs 

Our  Fathers  have  been  worse  than  theirs, 


146  ALMANACK   FOR    1741. 

And  we  than  ours  ;  next  Age  will  see 

A  Race  more  Profligate  than  we. 
With  all  the  pains  we  take,  have  skill  enough  to  be 
The  Wicked  when  compar'd  with  the  more  Wicked, 
Ivook  beautiful ;  and  not  to  be  the  worst. 

Stands  in  some  Rank  of  Praise, 

In  these  degen'rate  Days. 

DECEMBER. 

Behold  how  soon  the  Year  is  past  and  gone  ! 
For  Time  like  Streams  is  ever  rolling  on. 

The  Rose  is  fragrant,  but  it  fades  in  Time, 
The  Violet  sweet,  but  quickly  past  the  Prime. 
White  Lillies  hang  their  Heads  and  soon  decay 
And  Whiter  Snow  in  Minutes  melts  away 

Such  and  so  withering  is  our  blooming  Youth. 

To  Things  immortal  Time  can  do  no  wrong, 
And  that  which  never  is  to  Die,  forever  must  be  Young. 


AN  ESSAY  UPON  THE  MICROSCOPE. 

ARTIFICER  go  make  a  Watch, 

In  which  no  seeming  Imperfection  lurks 
Whose  Wheels  with  Time  exact  do  onward  roll, 
And  one  small  Spring  maintains  the  Motion  of  the  whole, 

'Tis  all  an  Artless  homely  Botch 
Compared  with  the  least  of  Natures  Works 

If  thro'  an  Optick  Glass 

You  view  a  spire  of  Grass 

That  in  the  Road  is  trod, 
With  Admiration  you  may  gaze 
On  Veins  that  branch  a  thousand  ways 

In  nice  proportion  wrought 
Which  truly  to  th'  assisted  Eyes  are  brought, 
That  he  who  is  not  void  of  common  sense 
Or  fill'd  with  daring  Impudence, 
Must  own  its  Maker  truly  to  be  GOD. 

Pray  let  your  Brethren  Men 

Use  but  the  Optick  Glass  again 

Thy  rarest  Piece  to  scan. 
In  thy  so  well  contriv'd  Machine, 
Those  boasted  Beauties  that  are  seen 
After  thou'st  laid  the  Hammer  by, 
And  done  thy  best  to  cheat  the  naked  Eye, 


ALMANACK    FOR    1741.  147 

We  view  such  large  unsightly  Flaws 

Not  inark'd  by  just  proportion's  Laws 

Which  shews  thou  wert  a  clumsey  Finger'd  Man. 

Urania's  Sons  who  view  the  Skie, 

Erect  long  Tubes  to  assist  the  Eye, 
May  we  believe  th'  Intelligence  they  give, 

They  tell  us  many  a  Star 

That  we  behold  is  bigger  far 
Than  the  small  World  on  which  we  live, 

These  Massy  Globes  their  Maker's  Skill  display, 

But  the  Minutest  Creatures  do  their  part, 
The  groveling  Worm  that  under  Foot  is  trod 

And  smallest  Mite  proclaim  a  GOD  : 
And  Butterflies  as  well  as  they 
The  Feathers  on  whose  painted  Wings 
Out  do  the  Ornaments  of  KINGS 

And  all  their  costly  Workmanship  of  Art. 
Behold !  ye  Whalers,  who  go  forth, 
Coasting  along  the  Icy  North 
Under  the  feeble  influence  of  Day 

Where  huge  Leviathan  does  play : 
'Gainst  whose  Impenetrable  Sides  the  Billows  roar 
Foaming  and  broke  as  from  some  Rocky  Shore ; 
Tell  me  brave  Lads,  tell  me  when  you 
Th'  unweildy  tumblings  of  that  Watery  Monarch  view  ? 
When  all  your  Darts,  and  Strength,  and  Numbers  fail 
When  with  the  'sportive  glances  of  his  Tail, 

Keen  as  a  Knife  he  cuts  in  Twain, 

Or  Oars,  or  Boats,  or  Men  ; 

Do  not  your  Brethren  then, 

When  any  of  their  Crew  are  slain, 

Stand  off  a  while  and  gaze, 
With  Wonder  and  with  vast  Amaze 
This  Optick  Glass  creates  a  thought  in  me. 
As  wonderful  as  what  you  see : 
Being  not  Deceived,  nor  Mad,  nor  Frantick, 
But  with  my  eyes  do  really  view 

Crossing  their  wide  Atlantick 
Of  but  a  Drop  of  Vinegar  or  two. 
Ten  thousand  little  Fish,  and  here  and  there  a  Whale, 

WThose  bulkey  size 

By  far  out  vies 

All  other  Tribes  that  therein  sail, 
With  more  perhaps  invisible  to  sight, 
Whose  numerous  Species  fall  below, 


148  ALMANACK    FOR    1741. 

What  any  Glass  could  ever  show : 

Small  as  the  Beams  of  Light. 

At  this  amaz'd,  Oh  !  wonderful  said  I 

Who  made  the  Earth,  who  rules  the  Skie, 
When  he  his  own  Idea  first  survey'd. 
Before  his  beauteous  works  were  made 

Then  forni'd  the  wondrous  Plan, 
And  took  an  Atom  for  a  Space 
To  Minute  down  the  Universe, 
Both  things  inert, 
Things  Animate, 

Our  Rolling  World,  and  every  lofty  Sphere, 
Th/  unerring  Hand  Divine 
In  Characters,  immensely  fine, 

Most  truly  hath  Delineated  there  : 

There  all  His  Works  in  true  Proportion  stand. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Earth  &  Gold  strive  for  Mastery. 

A  visible  conjunction  of  Finery  &  Fraud  in  some  Places. 

Alas!  an  unlucky  opposition  coming  on,  portends  a  bad  time  for 
LOVERS,  and  many  Matches  disappointed. 

Snow,  or  a  Mixture,  causing  Bad  Ways,  and  heavy  Traveling  ;  like  some 
Mediums  of  Trade. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  Man's  Flush  of  Money. 

It  comes,  it  goes,  it  fly's  like  a  Feather. 

'Tis  a  bold  Stroke. 

He's  cold,  but  raving  makes  him  Hot. 

'Tis  too  true  to  make  a  Jest  of 

Laws  bear  the  Name,  but  Money  has  the  Power. 

MARCH. 

A  smart  Chap  !     Stiff  for  Liberty. 

Fine  Times !     He  braves  it  out.     Stroke  for  Stroke. 

The  Planets  make  a  great  ado, 
About  the  Year  ''Forty-two. 
Strange  Innovations  ;  great  Alterations. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1741.  149 


APRIL. 


Uncertain  Times  !     Try  before  you  Trust. 
Unwelcome  News  to  some  conies  over. 

The  Skie  in  the  Night  illuminated  by  Fires  in  the  Woods.    Rain  follows 
after  it,  and  then  good  Weather  for  planting. 

MAY. 

Hot,  tho'  pleasant  Evenings  for  young  Courtiers. 

A  great  Combustion,  about  Affairs  of  Importance  in  some  Places. 

Descending  Showers  call  forth  the  Greens, 

and  'wake  the  rising  Flowers. 

JUNE. 

Mercury  has  hit  on  some  News  from  Great  Britain  very  remarkable. 
Now  Showers  rise  out  of  every  Cloud,  and  go  every  way :  just  so  a 
wandering  I/over. 

JULY. 

If  Black  and  White  Speak  what  is  Right ;  'tis  scorching  Hot. 
Fortune  seldom  shews  herself  noble,  but  to  Minds  that  are  generous 
and  brave. 

Fair  and  a  brisk  Wind  revives  the  fainting  Lady. 

AUGUST. 

Wicked   Men   are   fearful,  and  well  they  may  now,   for   there   comes 
Thunder  and  hot  Weather. 

A  good  Benefactor  appears  to  relieve  the  Distressed. 

SEPTEMBER. 
Now  falling  Fruits  and  Berries  paint  the  Ground. 

OCTOBER. 

Stand  clear,  and  make  way  for  the  Gentlemen  of  the  Bar. 
Stand  by,  a  Storm  is  nigh. 

Ladies  of  Pleasure,  improve  their  Leisure  in  — 

drinking Tea. 

NOVEMBER. 

I  have  nothing  to  say  about  the  Weather,  for  the  Planets  say  nothing  to 
me  for  this  whole  Week. 

Snow  or  Rain  and  Thundering.     Planets  are  concerned  in  the  Hububb. 

Now  Fountains  open,  now  impetuous  Rain 
Swells  hasty  Brooks,  and  pours  upon  the  Plain. 


150  ALMANACK   FOR    1741. 

'Tis  as  sure  as  Barth   can   make   it,  This   Month   ends   with   falling 
Weather. 

DECEMBER. 

Dark  Clouds,  thick  Air,  and  all  manner  of  what,  about  this  Time. 
'Tis  better  to  destroy  the  Wickedness  itself,  than  the  Wicked  Man. 

Boreas  blows,  and  th'  Eastern  Coasts  command, 

While  lofty  Hills  in  frozen  Armour  stand. 
The  Year  is  Ended,  so  fare  ye  well. 


Notes  on  1741. — The  Author  continues  this  year  his  practice  of 
the  previous  twelve  months,  namely,  to  introduce  to  his  audience  some  of 
the  best  and  most  appreciated  writers  of  the  period.  This  almanack 
opens  with  a  selection  from  Dryden's  Ovid  for  the  title  page,  then  follows 
a  characteristic  address  to  the  "  Courteous  Reader,"  followed  by  an  allo 
pathic  dose  "  to  the  Scoffer  at  Mr.  Whitefield's  Preaching." 

The  monthly  verses  are  excerpted  from  Dryden's  Horace,  and  others> 
and  the  almanack  concludes  with  a  poetic  "  Essay  upon  the  Microscope  " 
by  Dr.  Ames  himself. 

The  jokes  and  gibes  among  the  weather  predictions  begin  to  be  more 
numerous,  and  Fashion,  Folly,  Cupid,  Hymen,  Hard  Times,  Law,  Liberty, 
Politics,  Fortune,  Wisdom  and  Astrology,  all  combined,  are  treated  in  the 
usual  sententious  and  sensible  manner. 

It  will  be  noticed  during  the  past  few  years,  that  the  currency  question 
has  been  the  key-note  of  several  of  the  Doctor's  remarks  concerning  the 
"  medium  of  trade,"  etc. 

There  had  been  from  the  earliest  days,  a  scarcity  of  circulating  medium 
in  the  Colonies.  When  the  trading  was  mostly  with  the  Indians,  a  shell 
currency  called  peague,  pompeague,  or  wompompeague — sometimes  sea- 
want — was  used  to  adjust  balances ;  but  this,  as  the  ingenuity  of  the 
thrifty  New  Englander  developed  "  free  coinage," — every  man  becoming 
his  own  "moneyer" — tended  to  depreciate  the  value  of  the  clam,  the 
basis  of  the  system,  and  nothing  remained  but  to  originate  some  other 
method  of  finance. 

An  emission  of  bills  was  made  by  authority  of  the  Colony,  for  the 
redemption  of  which  the  Public  Faith  was  pledged —  said  faith  being 
founded  on  hemp,  flax,  and  other  staple  products  of  the  soil.  These 
"  promises  to  pay  "  wore  very  well  for  a  time,  but  when  they  became  old, 
"settling  day"  came,  the  treasury  was  in  the  usual  "shocking"  condition, 
and  in  1737  a  new  issue  of  currency  was  made,  the  conditions  of  the 
redemption  of  which  was  different  from  that  of  the  former.  To  distinguish 
them  apart,  the  earlier  was  called  "  Old  Tenor,"  and  the  latter  "  New 
Tenor,"  both  being  continued  in  circulation.  The  government  being 
paternal,  and  supposed  to  know  what  was  proper  for  the  people,  fixed 


ALMANACK  FOR  1742.  151 

the  values  of  the  issues  at  one  of  the  New  for  three  of  the  Old;  yet 
the  people, — the  sovereign  people,  the  ancestors  of  those  who  sit  on 
modern  juries — passed  them  at  one  to  four. 

The  inventive  genius  so  budding  even  at  that  early  day  in  New  Eng 
land,  possibly  promoted  by  the  study  of  "  Poor  Richard's  Art  of  making 
Money  plenty  in  every  Mart s  pocket  " — the  theory  being  varied  to  suit  the 
individual  idea — led  to  very  peculiar  and  annoying  practices.  In  order  to 
make  "  change,"  the  various  denominations  were  halved  and  quartered, 
and  passed  in  this  torn  and  defaced  condition.  Later,  portions  of  bills  of 
a  lower  denomination,  were  joined  to  those  of  a  higher,  and  so  re-issued. 
Then  counterfeits  were  made,  chopped  up,  and  attached  to  other  bills,  and 
the  confusion  became  positively  embarrassing.  The  value  of  the  circulat 
ing  medium  became  so  demoralized  and  uncertain  that  the  Indians  would 
not  receive  it,  and  people  of  evil  inclinations,  by  reason  of  the  condition 
of  things,  became  honest,  because  it  was  no  longer  remunerative  to  be 
otherwise  from  a  currency  view  of  the  matter.  (See  Historical  Sketch, 
p.  46.) 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1742 


By  Nathanael  Ames. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 


Printed  by  JOHN  DRAPER  for  the  Booksellers  1742. 


-Nature  knows 


No  stedfast  Station,  but  or  ebbs  or  flows, 
Ever  in  Motion,  she  destroys  her  old, 
And  casts  new  Figures  in  another  Mould, 
Ev'n  Times  are  in  perpetual  flux  and  run, 
Like  Rivers  from  their  Fountains  rolling  on. 

Dry  deli's  Ovid, 


READER, 

I  think  it  would  be  a  scandal  to  an  Almanack-Maker  wholly 
to  pass  by  in  silence  the  great  Conjunction  of  SATURN  and 
JUPITER,  which  happens  this  Year  on  the  23d  of  August  in  27 
Deg.  55  Min.  and  24  Seconds  of  the  sign  Leo.  There  neither 


152  ALMANACK    FOR    1742. 

has  been,  neither  will  there  be  another  Conjunction  of  these 
Planets  in  this  regal  Sign  this  Century  :  Great  Things  may 
therefore  be  expected  from  the  greatest  Persons  on  Earth, 
strange  Motions  of  a  religious  Nature,  and  as  it  is  in  Romes 
Sign  it  may  affect  his  Holiness  himself :  As  to  New  England, 
I  say  not ;  but  would  caution  my  Country-Men  as  follows,  viz  : 

You've  heard  the  doleful  Story 

Of  th'  half  d— n'd  Place  call'd  Purgatory 

Where  guilty  Souls  must  stay 
'Till  living  Saints  by  Prayers  have  purg'd  their  Crimes  away. 

New  England  Men  beware 
If  once  the  D— 1  should  catch  you  there 

You'd  not  get  out  again 
But  stay  you  must 
For  ever  curst 
For  want  of  Money's  a  mortal  Sin. 


READER, 

What  follows  is  a  Dialogue  between  Ralph,  a  Freshman  at  College,  and 
his  Brother  Will,  an  ignorant  Rustick ;  wherein  Ralph  undertakes  to 
instruct  Will  in  State  Affairs. 

Will.        Oh  Brother  Ralph,  how  do  you  do  ? 
Ralph.     In  Health,  kind  Brother,  How  do  you  ? 

Will.        The  Weathers  Cold  for  Conversashon, 
Leds  zettle  the  imbril'd  Nashion, 
Come,  here's  zound  Zyder,  a  good  Fier, 
Then  gradify  my  just  dezier  : 
For  when  you  dalk  of  Stade  Affairs, 
It  zo  delights  my  Ducky's  Bars 
Tho'  she  wants  Oven-Wood,  or's  a  Could 
She  listening  forgets  to  scould, 
Hey,  Wife  Keturah  !  Faith  !  Come  in. 

Ralph.    Well,  Brother  Will,  I'll  thus  begin ; 
Two  Bits  of  Paper  from  the  Plate 
Ingag'd  in  cruel  wars  of  late, 
Drest  in  the  Pride  of  Copper  Cuts, 
Each  other  charg'd  with  being  Cheats. 

Will.       Stay pleas'd  to  explain, 

I  fain  would  know  whad  'tis  you  mean. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1742.  153 

Ralph.  The  Land-Bank  and  the  Silver  Scheme, 
Was  all  last  Winter's  noisy  Theme, 
'Till  their  Debates  at  length  were  sent, 
For  Issue  to  the  Parliament. 

Will.       The  Barlemend— !  Whads  that  ? 

Ralph.  O  Ignorance  ! it  is 

The  Place  where  Noble-men  resort, 
And  makes  the  Nation's  highest  Court. 
One  there  was  Plaintiff,  one  Defendant 
The  Parliament  soon  made  an  End  on't. 

Will.       Hah  !  I  subbose,  upon  my  Troth, 

This  Barlemend  condemn'd  'em  both. 

Ralph.  They  did,  and  most  severely  too, 

Poor  Souls,  I  know  not  what  they'l  do. 

Will.       Hold,  Brother  Ralph,  pray  give  me  leave, 
I  by  your  Dalk  thus  much  berceive, 
This  Barlemend's  a  dreadful  Thing, 
As  great  and  bowerful  as  a  King. 

Ralph.  The  King  the  Parliament  is  join'd  to, 

And  they  do  all  things  they've  a  mind  to. 

Will.       Bankyers  be  thankful  then  ;  odds  blew  ! 
If  the  Barlemend  can  all  Things  do, 
Boor  Zouls  whad  wou'd  you  then  have  done, 
If  thayr  great  Bower  had  vurther  gone, 
And  bothe  your  Skeemes,  vruidless  Brojectors, 
Bothe  Zilver  and  Land-Bangk  Erectors. 

And  Bartners  all  condemned  for  Asses, 
Zince  whad  they  say  immediate  basses 
With  all  the  Vorce  and  Bower  of  Law : 
Banckyers  be  mute  and  stand  in  awe, 
Speak  bud  a  crooked  Word  and  vact, 
I'll  persecute  you  by  the  Act. 

Ralph.    The  Reasons  that  they  act  upon 

No  matter  whether  right  or  wrong, 
For  if  the  Parliament  had  said, 
That  in  each  Banker's  proper  head 
A  Pair  of  mighty  Horns  should  grow, 
'  Tis  Law,  Ergo,  It  must  be  so. 


154  ALMANACK    FOR    1742. 

Now  all  my  Logick  I  dare  pawn, 
This  Consequence  is  fairly  drawn, 
He  that  my  Argument  denies 
A  sordid  Traytor  surely  dies. 
For  where  but  one  or  two  dispute, 
A  Goal  or  Halter  ends  the  Suit, 
But  when  to  arguing  Numbers  fall, 
Then  they  decide  by  Cannon-Bail, 

Bankers  submit, 

Or  the in  you  all. 

Fare  you  well, 

RALPH  REASON-RIGHT. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Many  who  see  this  year  come  in 

Will  never  see  the  like  again. 

Hard  Seasons,  Cold  Weather  and  Short  Credit,  if  any. 
More  Talk,  than  Work. 
Over  Shoes,  and  Boots  for  Money  and  Wood. 

FEBRUARY. 

Remark  a  memorable  Battle  fought  somewhere  sometime  this  month, 
for  Saturn  and  Mars  always  make  Bloody  Noses  in  Times  of  War. 

The  man's  pleased  with  Fire. 

Now  Young  I/adies  are  in  danger  of  making  bad  matches,  or  the  afore 
said  Trine  l  deceives  me. 

News  of  Tumults  in  distant  Places,  comes  round  by  the  Edges. 

MARCH. 

More  News  than  true  For  every  one  tells  his  Story  but  differ  greatly. 
Industry  and  Plain  Dealing  portends  Prosperity. 
Advices  of  some  great  Exploit. 
Orion's  bands  begin  to  snap. 

APRIL. 

More  bad  Money  than  good. 

No  contentment  tho'  we've  more  than  we  deserve. 

Strive  you  must,  if  you  would  live. 

1  A   T?    9 


ALMANACK  FOR  1742.  155 

He  makes  you  buy,  but  soon  asks  for  Pay,  and  then  threats  to  Sue. 

Good  and  Bad  go  together. 

Many  now  feel  what  they  did  not  expect. 

MAY. 

The  Lass  trifles  with  the  Beau. 

A  Strife  hastily  begun,  but  soon  ended. 

Many  Projections  about  Publick  Affairs  to  little  Purpose. 

A  good  Day  in  which  expect  good  News  from  far. 

JUNE. 

The  Days  are  long  enough  for  the  Lady's  Dress  &  Tea-Table. 

JULY. 

Now  Mercury  is  upon  Business,  does  not  like  his  Orders, 
goes  back  to  the  Gods  for  new  Instructions. 
A  sudden  Turn  in  Affairs  of  State. 

AUGUST. 

Whatever  Sort  of  Weather  we  have,  will  now  be  durable  depend  upon '  t. 

Now  be  careful  how  you  spend,  and  what  you  lend. 

Now  Kings  themselves  engage,  and  act  a  wondrous  part  upon  the  Stage. 

SEPTEMBER. 

A  Season  of  no  great  Action  now ;  but  Vulcan  is  at  work 
in  the  Heads  of  all  the  Politicians  thro'  out  Europe. 

Aeolos  strains  his  Throat  for  these  Blasts. 

Now  if  a  Lawyer  should  be  charg'd  with  a  Lie,  He  would  say  he  had  it 
from  his  Client. 

A  Spell  of  glorious  WTeather,  but  Boreas  will  soon  commit  a  Rape  on 
Flora. 

So,  so,  he  has  kill'd  his  Patient,  Secundum  Artetn. 

OCTOBER. 

A  great  Struggle  for  Conquest,  between  two  Potent  Powers. 
The  old  Complaint,  never  more  need  of  Money  than  Now. 
More  Dunners  than  Buyers. 

NOVEMBER. 

A  Fool  turned  wanton  Ape, 
Looks  like  a  Beast  wrung  out  of  Shape. 
Souls  are  breath'd  &  sent  from  Heaven, 
But  by  the  Priest  are  Bodies  given. 


156  ALMANACK    FOR    1742. 

DECEMBER. 
Brave  weather  for  Blacksmiths  and  Innholders. 

If  Zealots  now  should  tread  awry 
From  Truth,  which  should  Opinion  try 
They'd  coin  some  wondrous  heresy. 

Law  and  Liberty  strongly  urg'd. 
The  Year  ends  well,  so  fare  you  next. 


Strange  Doubts  arise  to  my  inquiring  Mind ! 
Oh  was  I  but  from  ponderous  Earth  Refin'd  ; 
.  I  wou'd  Attempt  on  Airy  Fancies  Wings, 
Which  move  by  Lightning-tempered,  nimble  springs 
To  mount  the  Skies  along  the  Milky-Way, 
Where  numerous  Worlds  now  half  discover'd  lay 
Remote,  not  far  beyond  the  Ken  of  Sight, 
Scatt'ring  on  us  some  Fragments  of  their  Light, 
I'd  find  their  Suns  amidst  the  numerous  Throng ; 
And  know  to  which  each  Planet  did  belong, 
The  Comets  huge  Ellipses  too  I'd  trace  ^ 

As  they  evagate  through  the  Universe 
I'd  follow  them  and  measure  all  the  Space, 
Which  their  most  great  stupendious  Orbs  contain  ; 
And  find  the  time  of  their  return  again 
Unfold  the  Portents  of  their  threatening  Hair 
Whether  pale  Pestilence  or  whether  War 
I'd  range  the  System  of  the  fixed  Stars, 
Old  Saturn  view,  with  Jupiter  and  Mars, 
And  Venus  shining  Orb  visit  would  I, 
Nor  unobserv'd  leave  nimble  Mercury : 
I'd  know  what  Creatures  Peopl'd  these  Abodes 
Or  Men  more  Blest  or  whether  Demy-Gods. 
After  I  had  these  Worlds,  and  People  known  ; 
I'd  back  return,  once  more  to  this  our  own 
To  tell  Mankind  the  Journey  I  had  been, 
And  what  amazing  wonders  I  had  seen. 
But  oh !  the  cumbrous  mass  of  Earth  I've  got, 
Chains  down  my  Soul  to  one  inferior  spot. 
Ignorance  contracts  my  eager  longing  Sight 
Intently  fixt  on  yonder  Fields  of  Light, 
To  find  some  Path  that  Mighty  NEWTON  trod, 
Who  on  the  verge  of  the  Creation  stood, 
And  look'd  beyond  the  Bounds  of  Matter  quite 
Whose  Soul  took  all  Things  in  but  Infinite. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1742.  157 

The  Road  from  World  to  World  lies  quite  unknown 

To  all  Mankind  except  a  few  alone 

Whom  bright  Urania  has  conducted  there, 

Then  deign  to  hear  what  her  great  Sons  declare  : 

"  This  little  ever  rolling  Star  whereon 

"  We  Mortals  creep,  the  Planets  one  among, 

"  Appear  likeyaz^,  but  less  we  may  conclude, 

"  If  we  \yy  Jove's  Astronomer  were  viewed  : 

"  If  Sages  there  have  Observations  made, 

"  They  see  us  stand  or  move,  Direct  or  Retrogade  ; 

Five  Worlds  besides  our  own  roll  around  the  Sun 

Whose  rays  give  vital  Warmth  to  every  one. 

They've  Days,  They've  Nights,  alternate  Changes  sweet ! 

Summer  and  Winter  Seasons,  Cold  and  Heat, 

Good  Earth  and  fruitful  Soil,  then  shall  they  want 

Some  humane  or  divine  Inhabitant? 

Shall  Atmospheres  furnish  their  Winds  and  Rain  ? 

And  their  Sun  Shine  and  Seasons  roll  in  vain  ? 

Their  Stars  by  Night,  and  We  among  'em  shine, 

Their  Moons  to  dance  along  the  Ecliptick  Line, 

With  numerous  and  great  Eclipses  too ; 

And  what,  not  one  Inhabitant  to  view  ? 

So  Dogmatists  so  Biggots  may  conclude, 

The  Thought  is  quite  irrational  and  rude  : 

Their  noblest  Uses  by  themselves  enjoy'd, 

For  more  remote  are  mutually  employ'd 

To  serve  each  other.     Daily  they  dispense 

On  us,  and  we  on  them  kind  Influence : 

Their  Trines,  their  Squares,  the  great  Creator  drew,    ^ 

To  intimate  what  he  intends  to  do. 

But  Oh  !  that  silly  Man  the  mistick  Language  knew.    ) 

Whilst  Man  remained  iunocent  and  good, 

The  Language  of  the  Stars  he  understood  : 

As  BabeVs  once  after  the  World  was  drowned, 

So  Sin  has  now  this  Language  quite  confounded, 

Of  God  and  Angel  taught,  now  quite  bereft, 

Yet  still  Mans  old  Capacity  is  left ; 

His  noble  Soul  in  Darkness  hates  to  stay, 

By  Reason  aided  drives  thick  Fogs  away. 

REASON,  like  Zephyrs,  makes  the  Heavens  clear, 

Errors  impervious  clouds  to  disappear, 

The  pitchy  Skie  to  shine  so  blue  serene, 

That  the  old  boding  Characters  are  seen. 

Then  looks  the  Mind  from  whence  she  lately  fell, 

And  reads  the  Stars  as  first  the  Children  spell ; 


158  ALMANACK    FOR    1742. 

Thus  I  predict,  and  once  I  lately  hit  on 

The  pleasing  NEWS  remarkable  from  Briton; 

Of  an  Advancement  to  the  sacred  Chair 

Of  Government an  happy  Star  ? 

The  Gov'NOUR's1  bright  auspicious  Harbinger 

Lig't  up  his  Lamp  here  in  New  England  Skies, 

Portending  Good  did  daily  set  and  rise. 

Himself  a  Sun  is  in  the  Center  plac'd, 

And  with  New-England's  Stars  His  System's  graced, 

Then  by  the  Power  of  His  benign  Rays, 

Blest  be  New-England's  next  succeeding  Days. 


OH  1742.— Again  we  open  the  season  with  Dryden's  Ovid, 
continuing  with  a  remark  on  the  planetary  conjunction  of  Saturn  and 
Jupiter,  which  forebodes  wonderful  things  in  Continental  Europe.  As  to 
its  effects  in  New  England  he  saith  not,  but  poetizes  concerning  a  certain 
financial  Purgatory  in  his  usual  happy  manner.  A  "  Lecture  on  State 
Affairs "  conveyed  by  means  of  a  dialogue  between  a  collegian  and  his 
rustic  brother,  is  a  fair  sample  of  the  dialect  composition  of  the  period ; 
carrying  with  it  conviction  on  the  points  discussed. 

The  conclusion  of  the  almanack  is  an  untitled  poem  in  the  Doctors 
usual  style,  extolling  the  Solar  system,  the  wondrous  planetary  configura 
tions  and  their  significance.  A  reference  to  a  personal  prognostication 
made  by  the  astronomer,  which  haply  proved  correct,  and  the  usual  dox- 
ology  and  benediction  for  New  England,  closes  the  year. 

Burlesque  presages  regarding  the  effects  of  Conjunction,  Oppositions, 
Trine,  and  Quartile,  notes  on  money  matters  which  seem  to  oppress, 
lovers  troubles,  State  affairs,  economy,  a  faux  pas  between  Boreas  and 
Flora,  a  curious  couplet  about  souls  and  bodies,  law  and  liberty,  fill  in 
the  weather  spaces. 

1William  Shirley,  an  English  lawyer,  resident  at  Boston,  succeeded 
Belcher  as  Governor  in  the  previous  year. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1743.  159 

THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1743 


By  Nathanael  Ames. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 

Printed  by  John  Draper  ;  for  the  Booksellers  1743. 
Price  Eight  Pence  Single,  &  Six  Shillings  per  Dozen, 


Great  Nature's  watchful  Eye,  the  Sun 
At  GODS  Command  ascends  the  Skies, 
Wide  o'er  the  World  with  vast  Survey, J 
He  bid  the  wond'rous  Planet  rise, 
Around  his  Orb  in  measur'd  dance 
The  circling  Hours  and  Months  appear, 
The  swift-wing'd  Minutes  lightly  move, 
And  mark  the  Periods  of  the  rolling  Year. 


JANUARY. 

Uncomfortable  Rain 

A  snowy  Inundation  hides  the  Plain : 

Bent  with  the  Weight  the  nodding  Woods  are  seen, 

And  one  bright  Waste  hides  all  the  Works  of  Men : 

The  circling  Seas  alone  absorbing  all ; 

Drink  the  dissolving  Fleeces  as  they  fall. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  lovely  Queen  of  silent  Shades, 

The  Moon  in  trembling  streams  of  Light 
Wheels  her  pale  Chariot  slowly  on 

O'er  the  soft  Bosom  of  the  Night : 
Millions  of  bright  refulgent  Worlds, 

Heavens  glitt'ring  Lamps  are  seen  to  rise  : 
They  as  her  Virgin  Train  appear, 

And  she  the  fair  Vicegerent  of  the  Skies. 

This  line  in  one  edition  reads :- — 

"  Who  comb'd  his  beamy  Locks  with  Gold." 


l6o  ALMANACK    FOR    1743- 

MARCH. 

Are  we  depriv'd  of  Will ; 

Must  we  not  wish  for  fear  of  wishing  111  ? 
Receive  my  Counsel  and  securely  move, 
Entrust  thy  Fortune  to  the  Powers  above ; 
Leave  them  to  manage  for  thee,  and  to  grant 
What  their  unerring  Wisdom  sees  thee  want. 

APRIL. 

Curst'  is  the  Man,  and  void  of  Law  and  Right, 
Unworthy  Property,  unworthy  Light, 
Unfit  for  publick  Rule,  or  private  Care 
That  Wretch,  that  does  unjustly  move  a  War 
Whose  Lust  is  Murder,  and  whose  horrid  Joy 
To  tear  his  Country,  and  his  Kind  destroy. 

MAY. 

Now  Winters  rage  abates,  now  chearful  Hours 
Awake  the  Spring,  and  Spring  awakes  the  Flowers. 
The  opening  Buds  salute  the  welcome  Day, 
And  Earth  relenting,  feels  the  genial  Ray. 
The  Blossoms  blow,  the  Birds  on  Bushes  sing ; 
And  Nature  has  accomplished  all  the  Spring. 

JUNE. 
Now  from  on  high  Sol  darts  his  Fires ; 

The  glowing  Breast  to  transport  Warms  ; 
Life  bounds  afresh  with  soft  desires, 

And  rosy  Beauty  sweetly  charms  : 
His  flaming  Arrows  pierce  the  Flood, 

And  to  the  bottom  bake  the  Mud. 

JULY. 

The  early  Fields  are  now  in  plight, 

To  yield  the  Harvester  Delight : 

The  ripened  Grain  on  rising  Fields, 

A  most  delightful  Prospect  yeilds  ; 

In  even  Ranks  the  waving  Heads  appear, 

Bend  with  the  fruitful  Load  and  crown  the  lusty  Year. 

AUGUST. 
GOD  !  The  small  Ants  do  thy  Protection  share, 

By  thee  advis'd  to  save  their  Wintry  Store ; 
Their  little  Commonwealth  employs  thy  Care, 

Too  wise  to  want,  too  frugal  to  be  poor ; 


ALMANACK  FOR  1743.  161 

Well  may  they  shame  the  puzzled  Schemes  of  Man, 

Since  from  thy  Thought  divine,  they  drew  the  wond'rous  Plan. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Here  I  enjoy  my  private  Thoughts  ;  nor  care 
What  rot  the  Sheep  for  southern  Winds  prepare  : 
Survey  the  neighbouring  Fields,  and  not  repine 
When  I  behold  a  larger  Crop  than  mine 
To  see  a  Beggars  Brat  in  Riches  flow, 
Adds  not  a  Wrinkle  to  my  even  Brow. 

OCTOBER. 

The  Sun  now  shoots  his  milder  Ray, 
And  downward  drives  the  falling  Day  ; 
Cool  Evening  now  its  Beauty  rears 
And  blushes  in  its  dewy  Tears. 
The  wand'ring  Flocks  no  longer  Rove, 
But  seek  the  Covert  of  the  Grove. 

NOVEMBER. 

Beauty  and  Strength,  and  Wit,  and  Wealth,  and  Power, 

Have  their  short  flourishing  Hour; 

And  love  to  see  themselves,  and  smile, 
And  joy  in  their  Pre  eminence  awhile  ; 

B'en  so  in  the  same  Land, 

Poor  Weed,  Rich  Corn,  gay  Flowers  together  stand : 
Alas  !  Death  mows  down  all  with  an  impartial  hand. 

DECEMBER. 

But  when  the  angry  Surge  begins  to  rage, 

And  thro'  the  boundless  waste  the  Tempests  roar, 

O  Gracious  God,  do  thou  their  Wrath  asswage  ; 

And  bid  the  frightning  Whirlwinds  storm  no  more. 

Let  gentle  Pity  flow  within  thy  Breast, 

Oh!   Chear  his  melting  soul,  and  give  the  wearied  Sailor  rest. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

The  Superiors  are  all  Retrograde,  so  are  the  Affairs  of  Many, 
A   Beggar's  Brat  turns  out  to  be  a  Mighty  Man,  and  does  wondrous 
Feats. 

Money  and  Wood  are  very  necessary ;  but  where  shall  we  have  them  ? 


162  ALMANACK    FOR    1743. 

FEBRUARY. 

If  Men  are  rul'd  by  the  Planets,  Oppositions  will  spring  up  among  all 
Parties  this  Month. 

MARCH. 

Great  Strife  for  a  meer  Bubble. 

A  strange  Confusion  in  some  Heads  full  of  Conceit. 

APRIL. 

A  remarkable  Affair  happens  which  causes  much  speculation  among  the 
curious  and  inquisitive,  who  love  to  Talk  much  and  Work  little. 

Now  may  illiterate  Pedlars  in  Divinity  take  up  their  Hoes,  &  go  to 
planting.  (See  Notes  1743.) 

MAY. 

There  will  be  a  vast  Quantity  of  Bread  and  Wine  rain'd  down  not  many 
Days  hence. 

The  Lady's  now  appear  in  all  their  gay  Attire. 

JUNE. 

A  great  Politician  comes  off  harmless  by  a  cunning  Artifice,  contrary  to 
all  Expectation. 

A  pretended  Patriot  turns  out  a  meer  Biggot.  Vile  self  is  at  the  Bottom 
of  his  plausible  Projections. 


Mr.  Derham  says  "  that  if  it  Rains  Frogs,  it  may  as  probably  Rain 
Calves."  You  may  believe  it  if  you  please. 

Indian  Corn  grows  by  Day,  and  the  Fleas  bite  by  Night. 

AUGUST. 

Make  Hay  while  you  may. 
A  strange  appearance  of  many  colours. 
A  great  noise  about  --  Nothing. 
The  Truth  appears  plain  by  the  Liberty  of  the  Press. 

SEPTEMBER. 
Perhaps  a  sudden  Frost, 
By  which  the  tender  Plants  are  lost. 

When  the  Clergy  are  at  the  bottom  of  the  Plot,  they  are  wise  enough 
to  slip  their  Necks  out  of  the  Collar,  and  leave  the  Laity  to  suffer. 

OCTOBER. 

A  sudden  Blast  blows  up  a  Scheme  which  has  been  long  a  hatching  by 
an  old  Fox  that  has  more  Craft  than  Honesty. 

A  great  Struggle  between  a  great  Man  &  little  Woman  for  the  Mastery. 
She  gets  the  Day. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1743.  163 

Venus  is  mighty  loving  with  Saturn.     I  don't  know  what  She  means 
by  it. 

NOVEMBER. 

It  is  time  to  think  about  Snow  in  the  Almanack  nowr  look  out  for  it. 
POWDER  PI^OT  must  be  in.     Tho'  the  Pope  is  burnt,  he  will  be  Pope 
still. 

If  it  should  Rain  Gold,  what  Wars  would  be  among  the  old  Misers. 
Now  an  Army  of  Swine  are  Slain  in  a  Day. 

DECEMBER. 

Horns  will  sprout  in  a  less  Time  than  Mushrooms. 

My  Friend,  this  Almanack  I  hope  has  help'd  you  in  your  journey :  but 
as  'tis  almost  out  of  Date,  pray  look  out  in  Time  for  a  new  one. 

Lo,  the  Year  is  Ended, 

but  how  have  we  amended. 


OF  COMETS  OR  BLAZING  STARS. 

The  Inquiries  that  have  been  occasioned  by  the  late  Appear 
ance  of  a  COMET,  are  so  numerous  as  to  determine  me  to  fill  up 
the  following  vacant  Pages  with  a  few  Thoughts  on  that  Subject. 

NATURE.  The  NATURE  of  these  extraordinary  Bodies  is  now 
confest  by  the  best  Philosophers  to  be  the  same  as  that  of  the 
Planets,  which  without  doubt  differs  in  nothing  Essential  from 
that  of  the  Terraqueous  Globe  which  we  inhabit.  The}^  are  a 
Composition  of  the  same  Materials,  subject  to  the  same  Law  of 
Gravitation,  and  howsoever  various  and  surprizing  their  Phae- 
nomena  have  been,  they  are  rationally  accounted  for  by  the  same 
Laws  of  Matter  and  Motion  that  appear  in  all  Terrestrial  Sub 
stances.  COMETS  therefore  might  have  been,  in  their  Turn 
Planets,  furnished  with  as  rich  a  Variety  of  the  Necessaries  and 
Conveniences  of  Animal  Life  ;  and  these  in  future  Ages  may  be 
reduc'd  to  the  unhappy  Circumstances  of  these  Blazing  Stars — 
A  doleful  Inheritance  reserv'd,  perhaps,  for  the  Punishment  of 
their  ancient  guilty  Inhabitants  ! 

CONSTITUTION.  Their  present  CONSTITUTION  seems  to  be 
of  a  Central  Solid  or  Plead,  surrounded  with  a  large  Appendage 
of  dense  Vapour,  and  a  Lucid  Train  of  the  most  subtle  Ema 
nations ;  or  at  least,  this  is  the  apparent  and  most  obvious  Dis 
tinction  of  Parts  of  a  Comet. 


164  ALMANACK  FOR  1743. 

HEAD.  The  Head  is  a  very  solid,  compact  and  durable  Com 
position,  not  Inferiour,  perhaps  to  any  Metallic  Substances,  other 
wise  it  could  not  indure  such  a  prodigious  Degree  of  Heat  as  the 
celebrated  Comet  of  1680,  It  must  have  conceived  in  its  Approach 
to  the  Sun,  viz :  2000  Times,  at  least,  greater  than  red  hot  Iron. 
Had  the  Karth  been  in  such  a  Scituation  it  would  scarcely  have 
been  Cool  again  in  50,000  Years. 

ATMOSPHERE.  The  ATMOSPHERE  is  a  vast  confused  Collec 
tion  of  fluctuating  Vapours  and  dense  Fumes,  probably  of  most 
of  the  superficial  Parts  that  form  a  regular  Planet  in  a  Degree  of 
Dilatation  and  mutual  Repulsion,  always  proportionate  to  the 
Degrees  of  Heat  the  Comet  sustains.  Such  was,  according  to  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Whistoris  Theory  the  Primitive  State  of  the  Karth 
described  by  MOSES — the  Chaos  from  which  these  beautiful  Pros 
pects  that  cover  the  Surface  of  the  Earth  were  formed  and  the 
State  to  which  they  will  be  reduc'd  after  its  Conflagration  by  its 
destin'd  Congress  with  One  of  its  Fellow  Comets. 

TAIL.  The  TAIL  of  Comets  is  one  of  the  rarest  and  most 
subtile  Expansions  in  Nature,  a  Medium  very  probably  50,000 
Times  rarer  than  the  Air  we  breath ;  yet  sufficient  to  reflect  the 
Rays  of  the  Sun  from  these  void  Coelestial  Spaces.  They  seem 
to  have  been  at  first  darted  every  way  equally  from  the  Heads ; 
but  are  driven  back  from  that  Part  which  is  toward  the  Sun  in 
Parabolic  L,ines,  as  tho'  there  was  a  mutual  Repulsion  co-operating 
between  them  and  the  Sun  Beams,  and  in  this  Scituation  they 
are  always  observ'd. 

The  usual  Kinds  of  Comets  are  divided  into,  have  no  other 
Distinction  than  what  is  derived  from  different  Views  of  this 
Lucid  Train.  When  that  is  observ'd  at  right  Angles,  or  any  great 
Angle  they  are  said  to  be  Tailed:  Bearded  when  we  see  it 
Obliquely  ;  and  Hairy  if  the  Eye  is  in  the  Direction  of  its  Axis. 

MAGNITUDE.  The  MAGNITUDES  of  these  Bodies  are  various; 
but  none  esteemed  less  than  the  Moon,  nor  any  much  bigger  than 
Venus  or  the  Earth,  i.  <?.,  of  a  Globe  of  about  8,000  Miles  in 
Diameter ;  and  it  is  remarkable  that  those  are  the  least  that  come 
nearest  to  the  Sun ;  least  perhaps  they  should  give  too  great  a 
Disturbance  to  the  Neighboring  Planets  of  that  Luminary. 

APPEARANCE.  Their  APPEARANCE  is  always  made  in  the 
Hemisphere  round  the  Sun,  and  never  till  they  have  descended 


ALMANACK    FOR    1743. 


165 


below  the  Orbit  of  Jupiter  (which  shows  them  to  be  inferiour  in 
Magnitude  to  the  superiour  Planets,  since  they  are  equally  capable 
of  reflecting  Light)  and  their  Tails  do  not  arise  till  they  are 
warm  with  a  Degree  of  Heat,  almost  equal  to  that  of  the  Planet 
Mars ;  which  is  about  2~5ths  of  what  we  enjoy. 

MOTION.  Their  MOTION  is  performed  like  that  of  the  Planets 
Elliptical  Orbits  round  the  Sun  ;  but  they  are  very  Excentrical 
and  placed  in  all  manner  of  Directions. 

NUMBER.  The  NUMBER  of  those  which  have  been  particu 
larly  observ'd,  for  at  least  these  400  Years  last  past  do  not  exceed 
25,  and  of  these  the  Astronomy  of  Four  seems  to  be  perfected, 
which  I  shall  abbreviate  in  the  following  Articles,  viz  :  The  Year 
when  they  last  appeared :  Times  of  their  Revolution  in  Years : 
Time  when  they  are  next  expected :  Mean  Distances  from  the 
Sun  in  Millions  of  English  Miles:  Excentricities,  least  and 
greatest  Distances  therefrom  in  the  same :  Proportion  of  their 
least  and  greatest  Distances  :  Degree  of  lyight  and  Heat  compared 
with  the  Earttis,  at  their  mean  Distances :  Proportion  of  their 
least  and  greatest  Degrees  of  Light  and  Heat  at  their  Perihelions 
and  Aphelions  :  Their  mean  Velocities  pr.  Hour  in  Miles :  Days 
in  which  they  would  fall  to  the  Sun,  if  their  Projectile  Velocities 
were  stopt. 


COMETS. 

I 

II 

III 

IV 

Appearance  

1682 

1718 

1661 

1680 

Periods  

75  half 

81 

I2Q 

K>7S 

Expected. 

17^8 

I7QQ 

I7QO 

22^^ 

Mean  Distance 

IAZ.S 

15^4 

2O2=; 

cfioo 

Eccentricity 

IA.IO 

I4.Q6 

1084 

C  CQQ    C 

Least  Distance  ..  . 

48 

1.8 

41 

c 

Greatest     

2Q6A 

^106 

4066 

11200  5 

Proportion  

1:60 

1:80 

i  :  100 

i  :  20000 

Light  &  Heat 

I  '  ^24 

I  '  ^S7 

i  •  625 

I  •  6642 

Prop    Great                   •) 

Least  Dist            .     ..  / 

3600.1 

6400.1 

10000:  i 

400000000:  1 

Hor.  Velocity  

13000 

12500 

QOO 

6000 

Tim.  of  Discent  

AOOO 

5000 

8000 

37000 

1 66  ALMANACK  FOR  1743. 

The  foregoing  Articles  are  not  compleated  for  the  Comet 
which  appeared  February  last,  but  thus  much  seems  to  have 
been  ascertained,  viz  :  Its  Node  V5  8  deg.  15  min.  Inclination  68 
deg.  14  min.  Place  of  its  Perihelion  ttl  7  deg.  33  min.  Least 
Distance  from  the  Sun  about  20,000,000  Miles.  Least  Distance 
from  the  Earth  about  62,000,000 ;  and  has  a  Period  probably  of 
70  or  80  Years. 

The  EFFECTS  of  these  Revolving  Bodies  may  be  very  Extra 
ordinary,  viz :  by  inducing  great  Tempests,  Hiirricanes,  Inunda 
tions,  Alterations  of  Rivers,  and  the  Channels  of  Seas,  and 
lastly  Deluges  and  Conflagrations  on  the  Planetary  Bodies,  all 
which,  in  different  Circumstances,  they  seem  naturally  capable 
of:  but  their  ordinary  effects,  are  more  Salutary,  viz  :  to  recruit 
the  wasting  Light  and  Heat  of  the  Sun  ;  to  supply  the  Expence 
of  the  Fluids  of  the  Planets,  and  to  vivify  and  impregnate  their 
Atmospheres  with  that  SPIRIT  which  is  the  Support  and  Food  of 
Animal  Life,  for  which,  and  for  other  Reasons,  they  may  be 
justly  stiled,  The  General  PHYSICIANS  of  the  UNIVERSE. 


on  1743. — The  salutatory  is  of  the  "Fire  Worshipper"  variety 
— the  central  orb — the  blessed  Sun,  receives  the  astronomers  oblations,  as 
is  quite  proper,  then  we  pass  directly  on  to  the  poetical  captions  of  the 
months.  Under  January  a  well  conceived  verse  describing  a  January 
thaw,  which  with  all  its  inconveniences  and  disagreeable  features  is  plainly 
implied.  The  new  moon  is  worshipped  under  February  with  most 
fulsome  praise,  then  we  drop  down  to  terrestrial  things  and  imbibe  some 
good  advice  on  the  subject  of  will,  and  how  to  dispose  of  our  fortune. 

In  April  some  of  the  Doctor's  private  affairs  seem  to  have  occupied  the 
Muse,  probably  the  sentiment  herein  set  forth  is  born  of  the  action  at  law 
concerning  his  rights  in  cetain  landed  property,  which  was  in  Court 
about  this  period.  (See  "  Tavern  Sign  "  incident,  p.  24.)  As  the  season 
advances  we  again  revert  to  the  natural  order  of  things,  and  enjoy  the 
advent  of  summer  with  its  concomitants  of  grain  and  fruits. 

Later  we  moralize,  the  parable  of  the  Ants  and  their  example  for  the 
government  and  individuals  is  made  pointed  enough  for  the  meanest 
capacity ;  and  in  September,  the  Contentment  of  the  happy  husbandman 
is  versified,  though  not  without  some  evident  personality  in  the  latter 
lines. 

With  the  dying  year  we  assume  the  sentimental,  and  muse  upon  Death 
in  November,  and  a  "  Northeaster  "  for  the  December  finale. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1743.  167 

The  essay  is  of  more  than  ordinary  interest,  as  it  contemplates  the 
Nature,  Constitution  and  Utility  of  Comets,  and  cites  twenty-five  of  these 
appearances  prior  to  1743,  a11  °f  which  ideas  conveyed  are  vastly  interest 
ing  at  even  this  late  day,  particularly  the  Doctor's  resume  of  the  subject  in 
his  usual  inimitable  style. 

The  weather  column  this  year  is  full  of  evidence  of  the  Doctor's  being 
but  human,  and  possibly  afflicted  with  poor  digestion,  as  his  knife  appears 
to  have  two  edges  and  its  cutting  is  in  all  directions,  as  a  perusal  of  the 
squibs  will  make  plain. 

November  rejuvenates  that  same  old  "  Plot,"  while  "Horns"  are  men 
tioned  in  the  last  month  in  a  peculiar  manner. 

Among  the  Doctor's  papers  have  recently  been  found  some  characteristic 
correspondence,  showing  the  general  tendency  of  religious  ideas,  and  the 
latitude  given  to  debate  on  scriptural  conundrums.  The  copies  of  the 
letters  themselves  which  follow,  will  not  only  amuse  and  instruct,  but  will 
illustrate  the  Doctor's  aptness  in  discussing  the  subjects  placed  before 
him. 

The  small  matter  which  kindled  the  great  fire  having  made  its  appear 
ance  in  the  Almanack  for  this  year,  the  documents  properly  have  their 
place  here. 

The  copies  (made  by  Dr.  Ames  himself)  are  entitled : 

A  IVETTER  IN  ANSWER  TO  MELATIAH  MARTIN  OF  CONNECTICUT, 
A  NEW  IvIGHT. 

An  answer  to  a  letter  Sent  from  Conecticut  to  Nathll  Ames  ye  almanack 
maker  In  Dedham,  occationed  by  sd  Ames  putting  those  words  Into  his 
almanack  at  ye  latter  end  of  the  month  Aprill  1743,  (now  may  Illitterate 
pedlars  in  divinity  take  up  there  hoes  &  go  to  planting)  the  letter  con 
taining  ye  following  queries  : 

istly  what  it  was  nimrod  hunted, 

2dly  what  nebuchadnezzer  Image  in  ye  plain  of  Dural  wras  a  figure  of, 
and  what  it  Represented. 

3dly  what  that  abomination  was  that  made  Desolate,  &  what  was  ye 
holy  place  mentioned  Mathew  24th :i 5th. 

4-thly  &  istly,  who  were  ye  Daughters  of  a  Certain  Drunken  whoreish 
woman  ye  mother  of  harlotts,  2dly,  how  does  ye  affair  stand  with  you 
about  bastardy,  &  3dly,  whether  you  are  not  under  doubts  as  to  ye  number 
of  her  name  being  upon  you. 

5thly,  who  was  ye  man  of  Sin. 

6thiy;  who  were  ye  unlearned  spoken  of  in  2<1  of  Peter  3^  :  i6th, 

7thly  whether  ye  Beast  Saint  John  saw  rise  out  of  ye  sea  as  in  Revela 
tion  1 3th  :  ist,  was  animal  or  metaphoricall  &  what  it  represented. 


1  68  ALMANACK   FOR    1743. 


&  firstly,  what  was  ye  mark  of  ye  beast,  2dly,  have  not  you  got  his 
name,  3<lly,  and  his  mark  Likwise. 

gthly  and  lastly  who  were  those  merchants  &  are  there  any  such  now 
a  days  as  are  mentioned  in  Revelations  &c. 
Dated  Conecticut  Aprill  ye  3oth  1743. 

Signed,  MELATIAH  MARTIN. 

THE  ANSWER. 

Melatiah  Martin,  tho'  I  am  as  Intimatly  acquainted  with  ye  Stars  as 
you  are  with  your  Hoggs,  &  have  spent  whole  weeks  in  casting  of  figures 
&  drawing  planatary  Schems  up  garrit,  yet  for  ye  Soal  of  me  I  Cant  find 
out  whether  your  man,  maid,  witch  or  whore,  as  is  ye  Case  of  ye  famous 
Joan  of  arc  ;  however  I  can  prove  by  your  name  according  as  in  Neh:  3^  , 
7th  (?)  you'r  a  man,  especialy  if  ye  hebrew  originall  be  consulted,  of  which 
I  am  a  perfect  master,  &  at  ye  same  time  it  is  Evident  Even  without  ye  use 
of  Spectacles  it  was  a  woman  wrote  ye  letter  you  have  signed  ;  Conse 
quently  I  shall  take  you  as  an  hermophradite  &  address  you  as  Such. 

Your  it  Query  is  what  it  was  nimrod  hunted.  In  ye  first  place  I 
answer  Neg!y,  not  owls  nor  asses,  so  that  you  would  be  in  no  danger  were 
nimrod  now  alive  &  hunting  with  full  Carreer.  In  ye  2^  place,  affirma 
tively,  he  hunted  men  &  drove  them  to  as  Great  Dispair  as  Ever  D  -  1 
did  any  of  his  new  proselites  ;  and  as  to  there  Just  wright  thus  to  hunt 
mankind,  it  stands  upon  ye  same  foundation  ;  that  is  to  say,  no  foundation 
at  all,  for  ye  Divine  being  never  gave  nimrod  a  wright  to  Enslave  men's 
bodyes,  nor  D  -  1  a  wright  to  scare  men  out  of  their  Sences. 

Your  2d  Query  is  what  nebuchadnezzers  Image  on  ye  plain  of  Durall 
was  a  figure  of,  &  what  it  Represented.  Now  mr-  Hermopdte  We  read 
that  that  same  Image  was  made  of  Gold,  its  heighth  Considerable,  and  its 
Breadth,  or  as  ye  hebrew  word  real)'-  Signifies,  its  Depth,  in  proportion, 
&  as  I  am  a  parfect  anatomist  &  know  ye  Construction  of  the  humane 
body  to  a  nicety,  I  asure  you  ye  proportions  are  Exactly  ye  same  as  in  a 
well  set  man,  that  is  to  say  as  one  to  ten  ;  well,  as  it  was  of  ye  humane 
Shape  &  made  of  Gold,  Consequently  it  Represented  a  man  of  well  pro 
portion  body,  seeking  to  fill  his  pockits  with  money.  You  may  observe 
in  ye  Same  Story  ye  people  worshiped  this  Idol,  &  Looked  upon  it  as  a 
god  ;  never  Idol  looked  so  Glorious  as  that  Idol.  Whose  person  this  Idol 
represented,  you  might  have  seen  upon  Boston  Common  on  a  Certain 
Sabbath  Day  some  time  agoe,  beging  for  money  under  a  pretence  for 
orphans  &c. 

Your  3<i  Query  is,  what  that  abomination  was  that  made  Dessolate,  & 
what  was  ye  holy  place  mentioned  mathew  24  :  15.  Now  mr  Hermopdte 
you  must  know  from  me  who  have  read  all  Expositers  ancient  &  modern, 
that  ye  abomination  of  Dessolation  signifies  ye  Roman  Legions,  who 
Carried  Eagles  on  there  Standards  of  which  Daniel  speaks  Chapt  9  verse 


ALMANACK    FOR    1743.  169 

27 ;  &  ye  holy  place  signifies  ye  whole  land  of  Judea,  as  is  Evident  from 
ye  ancient  Septuagint  translation,  i  Sam:  12:  8,  where  ye  same  Greek 
word  is  made  use  of  as  in  ye  aforesaid  text,  nevertheless  I  beg  leave  to 
dissent  from  all  interpreters  both  ancient  &  modern,  in  ye  Explanation 
of  that  text,  for  as  we  have  much  new  light  at  present  in  ye  world,  I  would 
Explaine  ye  passage  thus,  ye  holy  place  I  look  upon  to  be  new  England ; 
ye  abomination  which  makes  Dessolate,  is  a  pack  of  Vegerant  Illeterate 
Idle  fellows,  who  as  they  have  been  lifted  up  by  ye  Common  people,  as  the 
Eagles  were  upon  ye  Standards  in  ye  Roman  Camps,  are  like  to  lay  waste 
our  land  &  bring  us  to  as  utter  Distruction  as  did  ye  Romans  ye  Jews. 

Your  4th.  Query  is  three  fold  Ist  who  were  ye  Daughters  of  a  Certain 
Drunken  Whorish  woman  ye  mother  of  harlotts ;  2dly  how  ye  afair  stands 
as  to  myself  about  bastardy,  &  3dly  whether  I  am  not  under  Doubts  as  to 
ye  number  of  her  name  being  upon  me.  I  shall  now  change  my  Stile  & 
Instead  of  mr  Hermopdte  I  shall  address  you  in  the  Stile  of  Mrs.  Her- 
mophradite,  for  it  is  Evident  to  a  Demonstration  you  have  got  upon  ye  affair 
of  Conjunction,  an  affair  which  of  late  seems  to  be  very  pleasing  both  to 
Brother  and  sister,  holy  as  they  are.  Now  mrs-  Hermopdte  as  to  ye  daugters 
of  this  said  Drunken  Whorish  woman,  I  assure  you  she  never  had  a 
Daughter  in  ye  world ;  for  by  dint  of  anatomicall  knowledge  I  am  per 
suaded  'tis  next  to  an  Impossibility,  but  then  you  will  object  &  say  'tis 
said  that  this  said  drunken  whorish  woman  was  ye  mother  of  harlotts. 
There  now  I  beg  leave  to  give  you  a  little  Instruction,  I  am  such  a  perfect 
addept  that  I  know,  never  did  any  nation  except  the  English  translate 
that  word  portion,  harlotts,  they  universally — theopians  (sic)  arabians 
&  no  body  know  who  translated  it  adultry  or  whoredoms ;  or  as  good  old 
Chauser  calls  it,  harlitreeve.  Upon  ye  whole  then,  it  is  certain  ye  Drunken 
whorish  woman  never  had  a  Daughter,  ye  Ruining  Sins  of  Drunkeness  & 
whoreing  prevented  it,  of  which  I  as  an  anatomist  am  well  sensible  &  can 
give  ye  physical  reason  for.  Consequently  if  ye  2d  part  of  your  Query 
falls  to  ye  Ground  so  that  I  cannot  possibly  be  one  of  her  bastards,  it  only 
remains  that  I  prove  myself  Destitute  of  ye  number  of  her  name.  Now 
you  know  her  number  was  666,  a  number  that  can  never  agree  with  me, 
for  I  was  born  in  ye  year  1710,  as  ye  Grany  will  swear  before  Justice  hall 
of  Boston  any  day  of  ye  week  Except  Sunday,  at  which  time  she  is  very 
scruplus : 

Your  5th  Query  is,  who  was  ye  man  of  Sin.  I  answer  it  Cannot  possibly 
be  you  because  you  are  an  Hermopdte  as  has  been  already  proved,  So  you 
can  go  to  bed  &  be  Easy ;  &  as  to  what  hindered  his  appearance,  it  was 
this,  he  was  a  Jackalanthorn  &  ye  World  was  then  so  full  of  Eminent  new 
lights,  there  was  no  room  for  him  to  play  his  pranks.  In  as  you  mrs 
hermopdte  live  in  ye  woods,  did  you  never  observe  a  Large  forest  of  oaks 
prevent  ye  growth  of  a  worthless  thornbush  ? 

Your  6th  Query  is,  who  were  ye  unlearned  spoken  of  in  2&  of  Peter 
3d  :  1 6th :  We  Creticks  in  the  Learned  Languages  do  not  care  to  take  up 


i  yo  ALMANACK  FOR  1743. 

with  translations  without  Consulting  the  originall ;  now  mrs  hermopdte  I 
assure  you  the  Greek  word  amathesis  properly  signifies  unteachable  and 
has  a  refferance  not  to  simple  honest  Country  people  that  are  willing  to 
be  taught,  but  to  your  proud  self  conceited  new  light  folk  that  have  as 
much  brass  on  there  forehead,  &  leachery  in  there  britches,  as  they  have 
emtiness  in  there  sculls. 

Your  7th  Query  is  whether  ye  beast  Saint  John  saw  rise  out  of  ye  Sea 
as  in  Revelations  13 :  ist>  was  animall  or  metaphoricall.  I  answer,  if  you 
Consult  ye  Context  you  will  find  that  this  said  Sea  beast  had  7  heads  &  10 
horns.  Now  to  find  out  what  sd  Sea  beast  was,  let  us  Just  keep  our  Eys 
towards  his  uper  parts,  for  I  arn  quite  sick  of  your  lower  part  debautcheries, 

they  will  not  bear  mentioning.     Now  if  ye  7  heads  were  W d,  T 1, 

D 1,  Cros 11,  Whee Ik,  Bl ss,  and  Bew IP,  an    admirable 

number  of  heads  with  as  much  brains  in  them  as  you  shall  finde  in  an 
Essex  Calf;  now  for  ye  10  horns,  there  (is)  Prockter  &  Bounds,  Wardell  & 
thatcher,  Denison  &  Shepard,  Cook  &  Kindrick,  and  oh,  wonderful  torn 
bell,  ye  latter  of  whome  is  an  horn  Exalted  above  that  of  his  Bretheren  for 
his  more  aboundant  Labours  in  Rogurey. 

We  go  on  to  your  8th  Query  about  the  aforesd  Beast,  dreadfull  as  he  is, 
where  again  your  Query  is  three  fold  Enough  to  plague  ye  paticence  of 
Jobe,  however  as  I  am  a  patern  of  patience,  I  answer  as  to  ye  marke  of 
ye  beast.  It  is  what  your  blacksmiths  call  a  brand,  &  a  very  usefull  brand 
Indeed,  so  that  beasts  may  not  stray  away  from  ye  proper  place  where 
they  ought  to  be  at  work,  &c — this  brand  is  said  to  be  in  ye  forehead,  that 
is  useall  among  mankind,  and  allwas  in  humane  affairs  signifies  Guilt ; 
this  brand  is  said  to  be  in  ye  hand,  that  evermore  signifies  Cheating,  now 
look  out  Sharp  &  if  you  do  not  meet  with  many  such  a  beast  at  this  Day, 
tis  for  want  of  Eys  in  your  Scull.  I  have  before  proved  mySelf  destitute 
of  ye  number  of  his  name  &  that  I  have  no  Concernment  in  it.  You  ask 
me  Indeed  whether  I  have  not  his  mark.  I  answer,  in  ye  heavens  astron 
omers  have  Discribed  12  Beasts,  of  which  I  will  give  you  a  Vewe  upon  my 
Celestiall  Globe  at  any  time,  for  I  am  a  Very  Complisant  Gentleman ;  but 
I  assure  you  my  figure  is  not  to  be  found  among  any  one  of  them.  The 
Great  Dificulty  then  lyes  here,  that  ye  Sea  beast  had  ye  Various  parts  of  a 
bear,  a  Leopard  &  a  Lion  ;  how  then  can  you  pick  me  out  of  such  a  mess 
medley?  Every  body  knows  that  I  am  of  an  Intirely  Different  temper  from 
those  animals,  having  nothing  fierce  in  my  disposition,  nor  ever  designing 
any  hurt  to  mankind,  I  am  Sure  my  Almanacks— an  unspeakable  benefit 
to  mankind — are  a  full  proof  of  this. 

Your  9th  &_  Last  Query  is,  who  those  merchants  were,  &  whether  there 
are  any  such  now  a  Days  as  are  mentioned  in  Revelations.  To  this  I  reply  ? 
they  were  a  pack  of  Vegarants  who  lived  upon  ye  Whoredoms  of  the  Pope 


1  Whitfield,  Tennant,  Davenport,  Croswell,  Wheelock,  Bliss  and  Bewill 
(?  Buell.) 


ALMANACK  FOR  1744.  171 

of  room,  and  at  this  day  if  you  desire  to  see  one  of  them  you  may  finde  him 
in  Sam11  Thacher.  Thus,  good  melatiah  martin,  I  have  answered  your 
Queres,  &  tho'  I  have  shewed  myself  some  what  more  of  a  man  of  learn 
ing  than  I  have  commonly  appeared  to  be  in  my  almanacks,  yet  I  assure 
you  I  am  Doctr  Ames  a  Physician,  Lawyer,  Astronomer,  Astrologer,  &  if 
that  is  not  sufficient  Nath"  Ames,  the  Conjurier. 
Dedham  June  ye  ist  1743. 

A  true  Copy  Examd  pr  Isaac  Bickerstaff  Esqr 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1744. 


By   Nathanael  Ames. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND: 

Printed  by  JOHN  DRAPER,  for  the  Booksellers,  1744.     Price  Nine  Pence 
Single,  &  Six  Shillings  per  Dozen. 


This  little  Book  serves  well  to  help  you  date 
And  settle  many  petty  worldly  Things, 

Think  on  the  Day  writ  in  the  Book  of  Fate, 
Which  your  own  final  Dissolution  brings. 

Millions  have  dy'd  the  Year  that's  past  and  gone, 

And  Millions  more  must  in  the  Year  to  come. 


Courteous  Reader. 

You  have  often  heard  of  the  Advantages,  Temporal  and 
Spiritual  that  arise  from  Temperance ;  And  if  you  take  Notice 
of  that  divine  Poem,  writ  by  the  best  of  English  Poets,  i.  e. 
MILTON'S  Paradise  Lost,  after  Adam's  Vision  of  Diseases,  a 
dreadful  Scene  !  The  Angel  tells  him  that  Abstinence  was  the 
sole  Method  of  Escape  from  the  ruinous  Assault  of  those  Dis 
eases,  and  of  obtaining  long  Life. 

Then  believe  me  if  I  tell  you,  that  if  you  would  enjoy  Health, 
and  stand  a  good  Chance  for  long  L/ife,  you  ought  to  abstain 


172  ALMANACK    FOR    1744. 

from  Morning-Drams.  How  many  youthful  Athletick  Constitu 
tions  have  been  ruin'd  forever,  and  the  narrow  Span  of  humane 
Life,  contracted  by  two  thirds  of  its  breadth  by  unreasonable 
Tipling  in  the  Forenoon;  indeed  there  are  some  Iron  Constitutions 
that  can  stand  the  Force  of  their  own  Hxtravigances,  but  how 
many  wear  out  their  Constitutions  before  they  arrive  to  30  Years 
of  Age,  and  die  as  it  were  of  old  Age  in  the  very  Prime  of  Life. 
He  that  can  gain  a  Habit  of  abstaining  from  strong  Drink  in  the 
Forenoon,  is  in  but  little  Danger  of  being  Drunk  in  the  After 
noon. 


JANUARY. 

Our  Yesterday's  To-morrow  now  is  gone 
And  still  a  new  To-morrow  does  come  on  ; 
We  by  To-morrow's  draw  up  all  our  Store 
'Till  the  exhausted  Well  can  yeild  no  more. 
To-morrow  I  will  live  the  Fool  does  say, 
To-day  its  self  too  late  ;  the  Wise  liv'd  Yesterday 

FEBRUARY. 

If  it  be  right  what  an  Apostle  said, 

Or  all  be  true  which  in  the  Bible's  read, 

If  all  your  Wealth  unto  the  Poor  were  turn'd, 

And  your  own  tender  Bodies  too  were  burn'd, 

Such  vast  Oblations  never  cou'd  atone 

For  lack  of  single  Charity  alone  : 

What  think  you  then  who  have  such  Doctrine  started 

That  all  the  World  but  you  are  unconverted. 

MARCH. 

The  Days  that's  past  were  happy  golden  Times, 
When  Men  were  sentenc'd  only  for  their  Crimes, 
For  Lying,  Stealing,  Whoring,  Swearing,  Drinking ; 
But  Men  are  damii'd  at  Noon-Day  now  for  Thinking, 
At  their  Tribunal  they'l  not  deign  to  save 
One  Soul  that  thinks  not  just  as  they  would  have. 

APRIIy. 

To  be  Good  is  to  be  Happy ;  Angels 
Are  happier  than  Men,  because  they'er  better. 
Guilt  is  the  Source  of  Sorrow  ;  'tis  the  Fiend, 
Th'  avenging  Fiend,  that  follows  us  behind 


(?)  Illusions. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1744.  173 

With  Whips  and  Stings  ;  the  Bless'd  know  none  of  this, 

But  rest  in  everlasting  Peace  of  Mind, 

And  find  the  height  of  all  their  Heav'n  in  Goodness. 

MAY. 

The  tender  Twig  shoots  upward  to  the  Skies, 
And  on  the  Faith  of  the  new  Sun  relies. 
The  swerving  Vines  on  the  tall  Elms  prevail, 
Unhurt  by  southern  Sho'rs,  or  northern  Hail ; 
They  spread  their  Gems  the  genial  Warmth  to  share, 
And  boldly  trust  their  Buds  in  open  Air. 

Dryd.   Virg. 
JUNE. 

All  are  not  right  who  think  themselves  are  true ; 

If  an  Opinion  of  one's  Self  would  do, 

Then  Turks  are  right  in  Faith  and  Practice  too. 

Tho'  Conscience  be  a  Judge,  he's  oft  unjust, 

Brib'd  by  ten  thousand  secret  springs  of  Lust, 

Then  farewell  all  rash  Sentences  of  Man, 

For  GOD's  eternal  Word  alone  shall  stand. 

JULY. 

A  Mighty  Giant  lately  slain, 

An  awful  Monster  from  his  Brain, 

Leap'd  forth,  new-born,  but  in  full  strength, 

With  fir'y  Tongue,  of  wondrous  length, 

Who  talks  to  all,  but  never  hears, 

Because  'tis  said  he  has  no  Ears. 

AUGUST. 

Thus  David's  Lyre  did  SauVs  wild  Rage  controul, 
And  tune  the  harsh  Disorders  of  his  Soul ; 
His  Sheep  would  scorn  their  Food  to  hear  his  Lay, 
And  savage  Beasts  stood  by,  as  tame  as  they. 
Rivers  whose  Waves  roll'd  down  aloud  before 
Mute  as  their  Fish,  would  listen  tow'rds  the  Shore. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Delights,  those  beautiful  Illupians,1  play 
Around  us  ;  and  when  grasp'd  they  glide  away : 
They  shew  themselves,  but  will  not  with  us  dwell ; 
But,  like  hot  Gleams,  approaching  Storms  foretell. 
Pure  unmix'd  Pleasures  on  us  never  flow'd, 
But  stream  like  watry  Sun-Beams  thro'  a  Cloud. 

BLACKMORE. 


174  ALMANACK  FOR  1744. 

OCTOBER. 

A  Cloth  of  Gold  extreamly  fine, 
Wrought  by  no  Hand  but  the  Divine ; 
Sometimes  it  lays  upon  my  Chair, 
The  same  as  holy  Angels  wear,  , 
Made  chiefly  for  the  Use  of  Man 
Sometime  before  the  World  began. 

NOVEMBER. 

Shall  mortal  Man  with  Chalk  and  streightened  Lane    "| 
Mark  out  a  Path  for  sovereign  Grace  divine, 
To  walk  on  Sinner's  Hearts,  and  then  confine, 
What's  Uncontrolled,  and  oftentimes  displays, 
Its  Power  on  Man  ten  thousand  secret  Ways. 
GOD's  Ways  are  Infinite,  above  the  Rules 
Prescrib'd  by  empty  narrow  hearted  fools. 

DECEMBER. 

Happy  the  Man  !     Alone  thrice  happy  he, 
Who  can  thro'  gross  Effects  their  Causes  see  : 
Whose  Courage  from  the  Deeps  of  Knowledge  springs ; 
Nor  vainly  fears  inevitable  things  : 
But  does  his  Walks  of  Vertue  calmly  go 
Thro'  all  the  Alarms  of  Death  and  Hell  below. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Now  if  Roses  should  Blow, 

They'd  make  as  strange  a  show  as  a  Crown  in  a  Poets  Pocket. 

The  winter  spends,  what  the  summer  lends. 

Then  drink  to  your  Friends 

And  lie  close  to  your  Wives  : 

For  Warming  Pans  suit  better  than  Fans. 

Cold  Weather  ! — but  'tis  January. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  Planet  Saturn  informs  me  of  Snow  and  Cold  Weather  in  the 
Winter  Season : 

Now  for  it,  behold  it  comes  with  a  Witness ! 

A  Hero  now  appears,  does  wondrous  Things  in  Fight :  and  God-like 
Honour  wins. 

Rain  or  Snow  in  great  Measure. 

Perhaps  there  may  now  be  some  Considerable  Event. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1744.  175 

MARCH. 

Very  dirty  wet  miry  bad  travelling  except  for  the  Geese  overhead. 
Great  Combustions  among  ambitious  Worldlings. 

APRIL. 

Alas  the  Hopes  of  early  Spring, 
Sometimes  revive  then  Sink  again  ! 

Unlucky  Mistakes,  a  fine  Scheme  breaks. 

News  from  the  Planets,  and  News  from  England,  some  good,  some 
bad. 

MAY. 

A  remarkable  Display  of  Humane  Courage. 
Strife  &  Debate  hurt  a  State. 
Now  the  World  looks  gay,  both  Night  and  Day. 

Malicious  Spies  are  prying  into  the  Actions  of  a  great  Man,  who  is 
not  prepar'd  for  such  Inspections. 

JUNE. 
A  Strife  for  Peace. 

Take  Care,  the  Sign  is  coming  into  the  Neck :    a  dangerous  Place  for 
Rogues  &  Thieves. 

JULY. 

Courage  with  Conduct  performs  wondrous  Exploits. 

AUGUST. 

Jack  &  Tom  Tar  make  a  noise  about  War, 
which  they  end  with  a  Jar. 

Nimble  Merciiry  and  violent  Mars  are  making 
Mixtures  in  the  Elements  over  our  Heads. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Now  beware  of  sudden  Colds. 

A  Rumour  of  some  great  Affair  turns  out  to  nothing. 

More  Money  !  is  still  the  cry. 

OCTOBER. 

Flora  expires  with  Cold  Morning  Sweats. 

Many  remarkable  Accidents  fall  out  about  this  Time,  (/  '-lilD    <£ 

The  Rain  comes  down,  and  the  Clouds  touch  the  Ground. 

NOVEMBER. 
Now  lay  in  for  Winter. 

5  POWDER  PLOT. 


176  ALMANACK    FOR    1744. 

Now  Saturn  changes  Signs  which  portends  Changes  in  the  Air,  and 
many  important  Changes  on  Earth. 

DECEMBER. 

About  these  days  Bxpect  impetuous  Rains  to  fill  up  the  Chinks  and 
then  Winter  to  set  in  closely. 

Now  you  may  bear  a  Cloak  over  your  Coat. 

Roasted  Shins  if  exposed  in  the  Market,  would  be  as  plenty  as  Neck- 
Beef. 

A  strange  story,  that  few  believe, 

He's  as  free  to  give,  as  you  to  receive. 

What  have  you  done  ? 
The  Year  is  gone. 


I  knew  an  Astrologer,  that  many  Years  ago  predicted  that  in 
the  year  1742  there  would  be  a  great  Stir  of  a  Religious  Nature 
in  this  Land,  and  great  Disputes  and  Divisions  among  the  Min 
isters  of  Religion.  And  as  his  Predictions  are  fulfill'd  to  a 
Tittle,  let  me  add  that  as  those  Religious  Topicks  began  to  be 
the  general  Theme  of  Discourse,  about  the  Time  of  the  Great 
Conjunction  of  Saturn  and/upiter  in  Leo,  a  Religious  Sign  :  So 
upon  the  same  Foundation.  Sects,  Controversies  &  Divisions 
shall  continue  till  about  the  year  1762,  at  which  Time  New  Eng 
land  may  expect  remarkable  Things,  but  of  another  Nature. 
But  as  I  began  this  Page  with  Religion,  so  I  shall  go  on  with  a 
few  Lines  from  the  Spectator  (Vol.  3,  p.  129)  concerning  Mistaken 
Devotion. 

"THERE  is  not  a  more  melancholy  Object,  than  a  Man  who 
has  his  Head  turn'd  with  a  Religious  Enthusiasm.  A  Person 
that  is  Crazed,  tho'  with  Pride  or  Malice,  is  a  Sight  very  morti 
fying  to  Humane  Nature  ;  but  when  the  Distemper  arises  from 
any  indiscreet  Fervours  of  Devotion,  or  too  intense  an  Applica 
tion  of  the  Mind  to  its  mistaken  duties,  it  deserves  our  Compassion 
in  a  more  particular  Manner.  We  may  however  learn  this 
Lesson  from  it,  that  since  Devotion  itself  (which  one  would  be 
apt  to  think  could  not  be  too  warm)  may  disorder  the  Mind, 
unless  its  Heats  are  temper'd  with  Caution  and  Prudence,  we 
should  be  particularly  careful  to  keep  our  Reason  as  cool  as 
possible,  and  to  guard  ourselves  in  all  Parts  of  Life,  against  the 
Influence  of  Passion,  Imagination  and  Constitution." 


ALMANACK  FOR  1744.  177 

"DEVOTION  when  it  does  not  lie  under  the  Check  of  Reason, 
is  very  apt  to  degenerate  into  Enthusiasm." 

"  When  the  Mind  finds  herself  very  much  inflamed  with  her 
Devotions,  she  is  too  much  inclined  to  think  they  are  not  of  her 
own  kindling,  but  blown  up  by  something  Divine  within  her.  If 
she  indulges  this  Thought  too  far,  and  humours  the  growing 
Passion,  she  at  last  flings  herself  into  imaginary  Raptures  and 
Extasies ;  and  when  once  she  fancies  herself  under  the  Influence 
of  a  Divine  Impulse,  it  is  no  wonder  if  she  slights  humane  Ordi 
nances,  and  refuses  to  comply  with  any  establish'd  Form  of 
Religion,  as  thinking  herself  directed  by  a  much  superiour  Guide." 
Sped.  vol.  j,  p.  129. 


I  have  determined  to  fill  this  Page  with  the  following  Lines, 
which  I  have  attempted  in  blank  Verse,  as  follows  : 

Glory  to  the  Father  of  endless  Ages, 

From  endless  long  Eternity  thou  wer't 

Though  in  thyself  unchangeable  and  fixt : 

At  thy  Command  unwearied  Revolutions, 

Roll  thro'  thy  Worlds,  and  tumble  up  and  down : 

The  toss'd  and  fickle  mortal  Sons  of  Change. 

Thou  uncreated  Self  existent  Being 

From  whom  all  Species  drew  their  first  beginning. 

Of  thy  Divinity  Each  Creature  shares  : 

Then  from  all  Creatures  may  Immortal  Praises 

Ascend  like  clouds  of  Incense  round  thy  Throne. 

Ye  vocal  Elements  in  Songs  of  Praise 

Respire  your  Thanks  to  him  alone  who  made  you, 

And  whose  right  Hand  with  ease  commands  &  weilds  you. 

You  wide  expanded  Firmament  bow  down 

And  touch  the  brims  of  this  low  Globe  of  Earth 

In  token  of  your  deep  profound  Humility. 

You  glorious  SUN  whose  Robes  are  fring'd  with  Gold, 

The  Train  of  which  borne  by  the  Moon  and  Stars, 

Trail  on  the  Earth  and  kiss  its  humble  Floor, 

In  your  Devotion  to  the  Source  of  Light. 

But  thou  of  Humane  Race,  and  favour'd  more 

Than  Angels  wrere,  who  fell  from  GOD  like  thee, 

For  Bounties  shower'd  on  thy  ungrateful  Head, 

Repay'st  th'  Omnipotent  with  vile  Neglects, 

Contempts,  Affronts,  and  horrid  Blasphemies. 


178  ALMANACK  FOR  1744. 

O,  them  eternal  Word,  incarnate  JKSUS, 

At  whose  mysterious  Birth  the  Angels  waited 

To  sing  thy  Praise,  and  publish  Peace  to  Men, 

When  the  eternal  Eye  beholds  thy  merits, 

It  drops  down  Love  and  Mercy  on  the  Earth 

Glad  that  the  Sons  of  Adam  yet  survive 

The  flaming  Vengeance,  waiting  to  devour  'em. 

Now  let  the  Tempests  of  impetuous  Winds 

With  Thunder,  Rain,  or  Hail  disturb  the  Air  ; 

Or  gaping  Earthquakes  menacing  Destruction, 

Rock  all  our  tottering  Buildings  to  and  fro 

Now  may  th'  Arch-Angel  sound  that  grand  Alarm, 

When  universal  nature  must  expire, 

And  to  the  Womb  of  Chaos  back  return. 

In  thy  unbounded  Love,  there's  sure  Protection 

Amid  the  Wrack  of  falling  Elements, 

Whose  very  \Veight  shall  crush  the  Earth  to  pieces. 


OH  1744. — The  Almanack  comes  to  us  this  year  modestly 
setting  forth  its  advantages  on  the  first  page ;  and  on  the  second  page 
may  be  found  a  practical  sensible  temperance  address,  in  which  the 
seductive  morning  glory  is  decried — and  properly  too  —  as  the  prime 
cause  of  many  a  ruined  constitution  and  life. 

The  monthly  offerings  are  certainly  the  Doctor's  children — for  none 
can  dispute  this  fact  after  reading  the  verses — which  still  have  a  tincture 
of  the  old  complaint.  February  and  March  and  some  of  the  succeeding 
months  are  thus  characterized.  Our  old  friend  Sir  Richard  Blackmore 
drops  in  a  verse  in  September  and  the  year  is  closed  about  in  the  usual 
manner. 

At  the  close  of  the  "weather  predictions"  and  phenomena  of  the  planets 
we  find  announced  a  verification  of  an  Astrological  forecast  for  the  year 
1742,  with  a  prognostication  by  Dr.  Ames  of  similar  troubles  for  the  suc 
ceeding  twenty  years. 

A  specimen  of  blank  verse  of  a  devotional  nature,  from  our  author's 
pen  closes  the  volume  for  1744. 

The  humorous  squibs  plentifully  strewn  through  the  volume,  are 
better  tempered  than  those  of  the  previous  years. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1745.  179 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR  1745. 


By    Nathanael  Ames. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 

Printed  by  JOHN  DRAPER,  for  the  Booksellers,  1745. 
Price  Nine  Pence  Single,  &  Six  Shillings  per  Dozen. 


-My  Soul  admire  ! 


That  boiling  Ocean  of  unfuel'd  Fire, 

The  glorious  SUN,  on  whose  imperial  State 

A  Train  of  Worlds  for  Life  and  Motion  wait : 

Prodigious  Source  !  that  e'er  since  Time  begun 

Has  wasting  still  and  undiminish'd  run  ; 

That  far  and  wide  does  genial  Streams  dispense 

Bright  Emblem  of  his  own  Creator's  Influence  ! 

Swift  Streams  that  almost  leave  the  Thought  behind, 

Almost  out-fly  the  Sallies  of  the  Mind  ! 


Courteous  READER, 

This  Almanack  which  I  here  present  you  with  for  the  Year 
1745,  compleats  the  series  of  20  Years,  wherein  I  have  annually 
without  intermission,  served  you  this  Way.  In  all  this  Time  I 
have  carefully  compared  my  Calculations  with  Observation,  and 
endeavoured  to  correct  my  Mistakes;  and  with  Regard  to  my 
Judgment  of  the  Weather,  I  have  only  this  to  say,  namely,  that 
I  have  endeavoured. to  observe  what  Aspects  of  the  Planet  affect 
the  Country  most,  &  have  the  Advantage  of  this  same  20  Years 
Experience  ;  but  after  all,  the  Weather  is  uncertain  even  to  a 
Proverb — As  fickle  as  the  Wind,  or  as  uncertain  as  the  Weather. — 
I  have  receiv'd  Letters  from  several  of  my  Readers  from  time  to 
time,  some  desiring  that  I  would  in  my  next  Year's  Almanack, 
insert  the  Planet's  Places  at  large ;  some  that  I  would  publish  a 
Description  of  the  publick  Roads,  &c.,  and  some  that  I  would  set 


i8o  ALMANACK  FOR  1745. 

down  in  my  Almanack  the  Holy  Days  observed  by  the  Church 
of  England,  but  I  must  return  'em  all  this  Answer,  namely,  That 
so  long  as  I  am  confin'd  to  the  contracted  limits  of  a  single 
Sheet,  I  cannot  oblige  them. 

Reader,  Your  free  Acceptance  of  my  Labours  for  so  many 
Years  past,  may  encourage  me  to  go  on  in  this  Way  to  serve  you 
for  Time  to  come. 

Dedham,  Octo.  6,  1744.  N.  AMES. 


JANUARY. 

The  Aspects  this  Month  are  generally  good,  save  an  Opposition  of 
Saturn  and  Venus,  and  that  may  throw  some  Difficulties  on  the  Affairs  of 
Matrimony,  and  some  unhappy  Matches  may  be  contracted  this  Month. 
The  Constitution  of  the  Air  may  a  little  incline  to  peripneumonick  and 
pleuritick  Fevers,  Coughs,  Asthmas,  and  Disorders  of  the  Lungs. 

FEBRUARY. 

Could  all  our  Care  elude  the  gloomy  Grave, 
Which  claims  no  less  the  fearful  than  the  Brave 
For  lust  of  Fame,  I  should  not  vainly  dare 
In  fighting  Fields,  nor  urge  thy  Soul  to  War : 
But  since,  alas !  ignoble  Age  must  come, 
Disease,  and  Death's  inexorable  Doom  : 
The  Life  which  others  pay,  let  us  bestow 
And  give  to  Fame  what  we  to  Nature  owe. 

P.  Horn. 

MARCH. 

The  Aspects  this  Month  are  violent  and  extraordinary,  portending 
burning  of  Houses,  violent  Deaths  by  unlucky  Accidents,  Feuds,  Riots, 
Affrays  and  bloody  Noses  ;  the  Thoughts  of  Peace  among  the  Nations  are 
banished,  and  all  Parties  put  on  an  angry  look;  but  Mars  and  Venus,  and 
Jupiter  and  Mercury  have  a  friendly  Correspondence ;  hence  I  conclude 
that  I/overs  and  Flatterers  keep  their  Countenances. 

APRIIv. 

The  most  considerable  Configuration  among  the  Planets  this  Month,  is 
the  Opposition  of  the  Sun  and  Jupiter,  which  portends  Debates  among 
the  Clergy  upon  some  nice  Points  in  Divinity ;  but  no  good  can  come  of 
Oppositions,  ergo.  The  Matter  is  left  in  the  dark.  The  Constitution  of 
the  Air  at  this  Time  inclines  to  nervous  slow  Fevers  and  vernal  Inter- 
mitants  and  Stagnation  of  the  Blood. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1745.  l8l 

MAY. 

Now  oft  the  LORD  of  Nature  in  the  Air, 
Hangs  Evening  Clouds  his  sable  Canvas,  where 
His  Pencil  dip'd  in  heav'nly  Colours,  made 
Of  intercepted  Beams,  mix'd  with  the  Shade 
Of  temper'd  JEther,  and  refracted  Light, 
Paints  his  fair  Rainbow,  charming  to  the  Sight. 

Blac. 

JUNE. 

There  is  a  Conjunction  of  the  Sun  and  Venus,  and  of  Venus  and  Mer 
cury,  which  does  not  relate  to  Men  or  Matters  of  high  Consequence ;  but 
amongst  Women,  it  signifies  Tattling  and  Tea-table  Wars  and  Railery  one 
against  another,  and  if  Women's  Tongues  were  any  ways  slanderous,  they 
might  hurt  the  Characters  of  each  other  as  much  this  Month  as  any  in  the 
Year. 

JULY. 

The  renown'd  Etnmller  says  the  Plague  is  an  exalted  Pitch  of  Malignity 
compatable  with  any  Disease  whatsoever :  there  has  been  a  Degree  of 
Malignity  attending  some  Instances  of  the  Canker  or  Throat  Distemper, 
not  much  short  of  the  epidemical  Plague  in  London :  Calomel  agrees  with 
the  Theory  and  Experience  confirms  its  usefulness ;  but  'tis  not  fit  that 
Asses  should  lick  Honey,  nor  Fools  use  Calomel  or  Mercurius  Dulcis. 

AUGUST. 

England  is  govern'd  by  Mars,  Spain  by  Jupiter :  This  same  Mars  and 
Jupiter  meet  this  Month  in  the  Sign  Scorpio ;  but  as  Mars  is  essentially 
dignified  in  his  own  House,  so  his  Steel,  will  I  hope  cut  down  the  Priest- 
Craft  of  Spain  and  France  both ;  except  he  is  betrayed  by  Saturn  and 
Mercury,  who  meet  in  the  very  Equinox,  in  Opposition  to  the  Ascendant 
of  England:  A  Circumstance  very  remarkable. 

SEPTEMBER. 

The  Sun  and  Saturn  meet  in  Libra  this  Month  ;  the  First  Time  of  their 
meeting  in  this  Sign  since  the  Year  1717.  As  bloody  Fluxes  increased 
when  they  met  in  Virgo  the  Years  past ;  so  if  Autumnal  Intermitants  do 
not  increase  upon  their  meeting  in  Libra,  the  two  Years  to  come,  I  shall 
be  as  thankful  as  a  Physician  can  be  for  Health  at  any  Time. 

OCTOBER. 

Look  round  how  Providence  bestows  alike, 
Sun-shine  and  Rain  to  bless  the  fruitful  Year, 
On  different  Nations,  all  of  different  Faiths  ; 
And  (tho1  by  several  Names  and  Titles  worshiped) 
Heaven  takes  the  various  Tribute  of  their  Praise, 
Since  all  agree  to  own,  at  least  to  mean, 
One  best,  one  greatest,  only  Lord  of  all. 


182  ALMANACK    FOR    1745. 

NOVEMBER. 

The  peaceful  Sun  and  Jupiter  are  joined  this  Month,  and  would  bless 
the  whole  World  with  their  benign  Influence,  but  a  violent  Quartile  of 
Saturn  and  Mars  follows ;  where  there  are  Campaigns  there  will  be  a 
bloody  Battle.  If  our  Indians  in  League  hold  their  Integrity,  now  let 
them  have  the  Credit  of  it  in  Balance  of  their  former  Accounts. 

DECEMBER. 

And  as  five  Zones  th'  setherial  Regions  bind, 
Five  correspodent  are  to  Earth  assign'd : 
The  Sun  with  Rays  directly  darting  down, 
Fires  all  beneath ;  and  fries  the  middle  Zone  : 
The  two  beneath  the  distant  Poles  complain 
Of  endless  Winter  and  perpetual  Rain  ; 
Betwixt  th'  Extreams,  two  happier  Climates  hold 
The  Temper  that  partakes  of  Hot  and  Cold. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Now  gagg'd  with  Ice,  the  Waves  no  longer  roar, 
But  with  stiff  Arms,  embrace  the  silent  Shore. 

Now  Virgins  will  own 
'Tis  hard  lying  alone, 

Such  Weather  as  this. 

FEBRUARY. 

A  proud  Fop  meets  with  a  sad  Fall. 

The  Sun  shines  clear  for  several  Days  together, 

And  who  can  deny  but  that's  good  Weather. 

MARCH. 

A  comical  story  now  is  told  : 

Which  makes  some  laugh  while  others  Scold. 

Brave  Tydings  if  they  be  true 

Of  Success  obtained,  after  much  ado. 

APRII,. 

Now  the  chearful  Sun  shines  gloriously,  and  calls  for  the  Plants  that 
stand  at  the  Door  of  Life. 

What  noble  Acts  atchiev'd  on  Europe's  Shore  ? 
Briton's  glad  Ships,  come  waft  the  Tydings  o'er. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1745.  183 

MAY. 

Ladies  appear  in  all  their  gay  attire. 

Now  nature  paints  her  colours. 

Now  the  Bee  sits  on  the  Bloom,  extracting  Liquid  Sweets. 

JUNE. 

Now  Two  that  had  been  Foes  do  kindly  meet : 
And  each  the  other  sincerely  greet. 

JULY. 
So  much  Finery,  so  much  Poverty. 

Jove  with  awful  sound, 

Rolls  the  big  Thunder  o'er  the  vast  Profound. 

AUGUST. 

Something  windy  but  a  Spell  of  good  Hay  Weather  unless  the  good 
Mr.  fupiter  and  my  Lady  Venus  deceive  me  again,  as  they  did  last  Year 
about  the  Frosts  keeping  off. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Fire  &  Smoke  in  many  Places,  both  on  Land  and  Sea. 
An  old  Knave  is  now  said  is  become  an  honest  man. 

OCTOBER. 

A  warm  Debate,  on  Things  of  State. 

A  Sight  about  these  Days  appear  : 
Such  has  not  been  this  many  a  Year. 

NOVEMBER. 

Money  &  Food,  Cloaths  &  Fire  : 

Are  Things  which  many  do  most  desire. 

Example  is  a  Living  Law,  whose  sway 
Men  more  than  all  the  written  Law  obey. 

DECEMBER. 
Now  make  Preparation  for  an  unwelcome  Guest. 

An  Honest  Man  may  take  a  Knave's  Advice, 
But  Idiot's  only  will  be  couzen'd  twice. 

A  Shower  of  soft  &  fleecy  Rain, 
Falls  to  new  cloathe  the  Earth  again. 


184  ALMANACK    FOR    1745. 

We  conjecture  many  strange  Things  concerning  the  Planets; 
but  there  are  many  strange  Things,  which  are  Fact  and  not 
Conjecture,  to  be  found  in  this  Planet  on  which  we  live. 

And  First,  Of  FOUNTAINS  and  SPRINGS  :  —  There  is  a 
famous  Fountain  near  Grenoble  in  France,  which  appears  as  if 
covered  with  Flames,  and  boileth  up  in  great  Bubbles,  and  yet 
it  is  never  Hot — Near  the  City  of  Mons  is  a  Spring  which  makes 
Silver  look  exactly  like  Gold  :  [  We  have  Knaves  that  would  be 
glad  to  use  such  Water .] — In  a  large  Lake  near  to  St.  Omers  are 
floating  Islands  which  are  inhabited.  —  In  the  Desarts  of  Padolia 
in  Poland  is  a  Lake  whose  Waters  by  the  Heat  of  the  Sun  con 
dense  into  solid  Salt.  —  Near  Giiadalaxara,  in  New  Castile,  is  a 
Lake  which  never  fails  to  send  forth  dreadful  Howlings  before 
a  storm  —  In  Hungary  there  are  Waters  of  such  a  corroding 
nature  that  they  will  consume  a  Horse-Shoe  in  24  Hours. —  Near 
Esperies,  in  Upper  Hungary,  are  two  deadly  Fountains,  whose 
Water  sends  forth  such  an  infectious  Steam  that  it  kills  either 
Beast  or  Bird  approaching  the  same ;  for  preventing  of  which 
they  are  walled  round  and  kept  covered. —  In  Wales  is  a  Spring 
which  ebbs  and  flows  contrary  to  the  Sea. —  In  Scotland  is  a 
Spring  which  ebbs  and  flows  with  the  Sea. —  There's  another 
Spring  in  Scotland  which  never  freezes  all  over  till  the  Month 
of  February  ;  and  after  that  Time,  one  Night's  Frost  will  do  it. 
— Near  Wiggen  in  Lancashire,  in  England,  is  a  famous  Well, 
which  being  emptied,  there  breaks  out  a  sulphureous  Vapour, 
which  makes  the  Water  bubble  up  as  if  it  boyled;  and  a  candle 
being  put  thereto,  it  instantly  takes  Fire  and  Burns  like  Brandy  : 
During  a  Calm  the  Flame  will  continue  a  whole  Day ;  and  by 
its  Heat  they  can  boyl  Eggs,  Meat,  &c.  and  yet  the  Water  it  self 
is  Cold. —  A  River  in  England  loseth  itself  under-Ground,  and 
ariseth  again  at  some  considerable  Distance. — And  in  Dedham, 
where  I  now  live,  There  is  a  Pond  that  holds  its  Water  the 
dryest  Summer  ;  but  is  dry  the  wetest  Winter  that  comes. 

Secondly,  OF  MOUNTAINS  :  — Who  can  describe  the  Wonders 
of  Mount  sEtna  and  Vesuvius ;  the  Floods  of  Fire  they  some 
times  cast  forth !  -  -  There  is  a  Mountain  nigh  to  Rhode,  in 
Guinne,  which  burns  when  it  Rains.  —  In  Iceland  there  is  a  ter 
rible  Volcano,  which  tho'  cover'd  with  Snow,  vomits  Fire  and 
sulphureous  Matter  in  great  Abundance  ;  and  sometimes  with 


ALMANACK    FOR    1745.  185 

terrible  roaring  like  the  loudest  Claps  of  Thunder. — But  to  con 
clude,  At  Bridgewater,  in  N.  E.  the  Place  of  my  Nativity,  there 
is  a  large  Rock  of  several  Tuns  weight,  which  was  some  Years 
ago  at  a  considerable  Distance  from  the  Shoar  of  a  large  Pond : 
but  has  gradually  travelled  many  Rods  up  to  the  Banks  of  the 
Shoar,  and  has  left  a  plain  visible  Track  in  the  Sands  behind. 


A  brief  CHRONOLOGY  of  remarkable  Events. 

Years  since. 

And  first  of  all,  since  this  our  World  began 5695 

Since  it  was  drowned  for  the  Sins  of  Man 4038 

Since  noble  Hector  fell  with  ancient  Troy 2936 

Since  Sampson  did  himself,  and  Foes  destroy 2816 

Since  Homer  liv'd,  for  Poets  never  die 2594 

Since  Daniel  wrote  his  wonderous  Prophesie 2227 

Since  ancient  London  was  by  Ludd  uprear'd 2852 

Since  Rome  was  built  which  all  the  World  rever'd 2443 

Since  JESUS  CHRIST  at  Bethlehem  was  born 1745 

Since  Crucify'd  with  cruelty  and  scorn 1712 

Since  England  first  the  Christian  Faith  receiv'd   1581 

Since  Constantine  the  great  in  CHRIST  believ'd 1434 

Since  the  destructive  Ball  by  Guns  were  hurl'd  365 

Since  first  the  Use  of  PRINTING  bless'd  the  World 317 

Since  our  Forefathers  ventur'd  o'er  the  Sea,    ^ 

And  planted  first  old  Plymouth  Colony,  J 

Since  White1  was  born,  the  first  that  e'er  had  Birth,  "I 

Of  English  Blood  on  this  Neiu  England  Earth.          /  " 

Since  Harvard  did  the  College  first  provide,  )  Jo6 

Where  great  Apollo 's  learned  Sons  reside,        > 

Since  Narraganset  Fort  was  bravely  fir'd ;     \ 

Where  many  a  Captain  nobly  expir'd. 

Since  Philip  first  his  cruel  war  begun  1 

Which  made  our  English  Blood  like  Rivers  run.  > 

Since  the  vast  Comet  whose  flaming  Tail  reach'd  high,  \      6 

And  brandished  his  Tresses  in  the  Sky.  / 

Since  fair  Bostonia  fed  the  crackling  Flame,  > 

And  Phcenix-\\k.e,  new  from  her  Ashes  came.          / 

Since  the  grand  Congress  of  th'  superior  Stars,      ) 

When  Saturn  joined  at  once  withy^z^  and  Mars.  ) 

Peregrine  White,  the  first  white  child  born  in  New  England. 


1 86  ALMANACK    FOR    1745. 

Since  our  New  England  Hero  Lovell1  dy'd,     \  2Q 

Whilst  Victory  lay  bleeding  by  his  side.  J 

Since  th'  Barth  receiv'd  a  most  tremendous  shock,    )  n 

Which  made  us  tremble,  and  our  Houses  rock,  ) 

Since  Britain's  Patience  would  no  more  sustain, 

The  great  Abuses  of  affronting  Spain. 

Since  the  long  Winter  of  prodigious  Frost,  ") 

By  which  much  Sheep  and  Cattle  too  were  lost.      J 

Since  in  our  Skies  there  blaz'd  an  awful  Star,    \ 

Presaging  Earthquake  and  a  general  War.  / 


OH  1745. — The  Almanack  this  year  commences  with  the 
usual  front  page  salute, — the  glorious  Sun  rises  promptly.  In  the  address 
to  the  Courteous  READER,  the  Doctor  announces  the  completion  of  his 
twentieth  annual  Almanack,  and  to  inquirers  gives  his  reasons  why  he 
cannot  add  to  its  present  contents  other  information  demanded  by  his 
patrons. 

The  Muse  does  not  indulge  much  in  poetry  this  month.  Sir  Richard 
Blackmore,  and  one  or  two  others  are  drawn  upon  for  a  verse  each  for  the 
monthly  pages,  while  in  the  intervening  months  the  Doctor  indulges 
himself  in  astrological  predictions  on  Matrimony  and  Medicine — -Con 
flagrations  and  Canker.  Tattling  and  Tea  table  wars.  Priest  craft  and 
Poverty. — Campaigns  and  Calomel — Fluxes  and  Folly,  and  all  the  various 
troubles  which  could  possibly  agitate  any  community. 

The  Essay  considers  peculiarities  of  Fountains  and  Springs  in  various 
parts  of  the  Earth,  which  is  of  much  attractiveness,  as  also  is  the  paragraph 
on  Mountains. 

The  Almanack  contains  this  year  for  the  first  time  a  "  Chronology  of 
remarkable  events,"  such  as  were  common  in  similar  English  publications 
of  the  period.  The  items  would  not  be  particularly  interesting  further 
than  the  history  detailed — were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  the  Doctor  has 
ingeniously  woven  them  into  very  acceptable  rhyme. 

The  weather  column  contains  characteristic  spice. 

1  Capt.  John  Lovewell,  slain  by  the  Indians  in  the  present  township  of 
Fryeburg,  Maine,  May  8,  1725. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1746.  187 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR   1746. 


By  Nathanael  Ames. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 

Printed  by  JOHN  DRAPER,  for  the  Booksellers,  1746. 
Price  Nine  Pence  Single  <2f  Six  Shillings  per  Dozen. 


-Nor  think  I  can  foretel 


Those  Secrets  that  the  Stars  do  not  reveal : 
One  asks  how  soon  Panthea  may  be  won, 
And  longs  to  feel  the  Marriage  Fetters  on  : 
Others  convinc'd  by  melancholy  Proof 
Inquire  when  courteous  Fates  will  strike  'em  off. 
Some  by  what  Means  they  may  redress  the  Wrong, 
When  Fathers  the  Possession  keep  too  long : 
And  some  would  know  the  issue  of  their  Cause, 
And  whether  Gold  can  sodder  up  its  Flaws. 


Courteous  Reader, 

With  much  Difficulty  I  present  you  with  another  Almanack 
for  the  Year  1746.  I  may  say  the  Year  past  has  been  truly 
Annus  tenebrosus  with  me.  I  have  been  violently  assaulted ; 
my  Enemies  in  a  private  Way  endeavour  to  blacken  my  Name 
and  Reputation,  and  would  have  as  many  as  they  have  Opportu 
nity  to  converse  with,  entertain  the  same  little  idle  Ideas  of  me 
as  they  have  form'd  in  their  own  groveling  Minds :  They  would 
have  caused  Urania  to  have  quitted  her  friendly  Visits,  in  Con 
sequence  of  which  you  would  have  had  no  Almanack  of  mine 
this  Year ;  but  the  Reproach  and  Scandal  of  the  Base  instamps 
the  Character  of  Glory,  and  leaves  on  the  Head  of  him  they 
smite  a  Monument  of  Worth  and  Honour.  Oh  the  folly !  that 
Men  should  be  ready  almost  to  murther  one  another  for  a  few 
Acres  of  the  Surface  of  this  Earth,  when  the  whole  Earth  itself 


1 88  ALMANACK  FOR  1746. 

is  but  a  Point  in  comparison  of  the  other  Worlds  that  do  actually 
rowl  about  the  Sun,  who  is  their  Sun  as  well  as  our's.  I  have 
seen  a  Hillock,  as  large  for  the  swarming  Inhabitants  of  Aunts 
who  dwell  about  it,  as  the  City  of  London  is  for  Men  ;  and  is  it 
not  matter  of  Diversion  to  stand  by  and  see  a  couple  of  sturdy 
Pismires  of  Distinction,  fight  even  to  blood  for  one  of  the  Pebbles 
of  which  their  Mole  hill  is  composed.  N.  Ames. 


JANUARY. 

Want  is  a  bitter  and  a  hateful  Good, 

Because  its  Vertues  are  not  understood ; 

If  we  from  Wealth  to  Poverty  descend, 

Want  gives  to  know  the  Flatt'rer  from  the  Friend. 
Want  is  the  scorn  of  every  empty  Fool, 
And  Wit  in  Rags  is  turn'd  to  ridicule. 

FEBRUARY. 

May  uncorrupted  Law  decide 
Each  weighty  Cause  that  now  is  try'd ; 
But  some  who  make  the  Law  their  Rule 
Would  bend  it  like  a  Leaden  Tool : 
But  he  that  throws  his  Compass  by 
To  sail  by  Meteors  in  the  Skie, 
May  chance  to  get  in  woful  plight, 
By  following  Ignus  Fatuus  Light. 

MARCH. 

O  Shame  to  Men  !    Devil  with  Devil  damn'd, 

Firm  Concord  holds.     Men  only  disagree, 

Of  Creatures  rational,  tho'  under  hope 

Of  Heavenly  Grace  ;  and  God  proclaiming  Peace, 

Yet  live  in  Hatred,  Enmity  and  Strife 

Among  themselves,  and  levy  cruel  WTar.  Milt. 

APRIL. 


-The  Trumpet's  terribly  from  far, 


With  rattling  Clangor  rouze  the  sleepy  War : 
The  Soldier's  Shouts  succeeds  the  Brazen  sounds, 
And  Heav'n  from  Pole  to  Pole  the  Noise  resounds 
The  Sun  starts  back,  to  see  the  Fields  display 
Their  rival  Lustre  and  terrestial  Day. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1746.  189 

MAY. 

The  Sun  &  Mars  are  in  tf  this  Month,  which  is  commonly  attended 
with  the  burning  of  Houses :  Some  of  the  Days  in  this  pleasant  Month 
look  big  with  Misfortune  to  many  Persons,  &  whilst  some  are  really  hurt, 
others  suffer  greatly  by  the  Terrors  of  their  Imagination  ;  for  if  the  Q)  and 
other  Planets  influence  Men's  Brains,  why  should  they  not  influence  their 

Actions. 

JUNK. 

And  that  by  certain  Signs  we  may  presage 

Of  Heats  and  Rains,  and  Winds  impetuous  Rage  : 

The  Sov'reign  of  the  Heav'ns  has  set  on  high, 

Sure  Signs  to  mark  the  Changes  of  the  Skie, 

When  southern  Blasts  should  cease,  &  when  the  Swain 

Shou'd  near  their  Folds  his  feeding  Flock  restain. 

JULY. 

For  e'er  the  rising  Winds  begin  to  roar, 

The  working  Seas  advance  to  wash  the  Shoar ; 

Sott  whispers  run  along  the  leafy  Woods, 

And  Mountains  whistle  to  the  murm'ring  Floods. 

Wet  Weather  seldom  hurts  the  most  unwise, 

So  plain  the  signs,  such  Prophets  are  the  Skies. 

AUGUST. 
Now,  Sirius  from  on  high, 


With  pestilential  Heat  infests  the  Sky, 
The  rising  Vapours  choak  the  wholesome  Air, 
And  blasts  of  noisome  Wind  corrupt  the  Year. 
The  Effluvia  keen,  on  nervous  Moisture  feeds, 
Ingenders  Death,  and  dark  Destruction  breeds. 

vSEPTEMBER. 

Good  Sun  expected,  Evil  unforeseen, 
Appear  by  turns,  as  Fortune  shifts  the  Scene : 
Some  rais'd  aloft,  come  tumbling  down  amain, 
Then  fall  so  hard,  they  bound  and  rise  again  ; 
For  fickle  Fortune's  favour,  and  her  spight, 
Roll  with  alternate  Waves,  like  Day  and  Night. 

OCTOBER. 

The  Cow  looks  up,  and  from  a/ar  can  find 
The  Change  of  Heav'n,  and  snuffs  it  in  the  Wind. 
The  nightly  Virgin,  while  her  Wheel  she  plies, 
Forsees  the  Storms  impending  in  the  Skies, 
When  spark'ling  Lamps  their  sputt'ring  Light  advance 
And  in  the  Sockets  oily  Bubbles  dance. 


190  ALMANACK  FOR  1746. 

NOVEMBER. 

If  Sol  arise  unwilling  to  his  Race, 
Clouds  on  his  Brow,  and  Spots  upon  his  Face  ; 
Or  if  thro'  Mists  he  shoots  his  sullen  Beams, 
Frugal  of  Light,  in  loose  and  stragling  Streams, 
Suspect  a  drisly  Day  when  southern  Rain, 
Fatal  to  Fruits,  and  Flocks  and  promis'd  Gain. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Power  of  Love, 

In  Earth,  in  Seas,  and  Air  and  Heav'n  above, 

Rules  unresisted  with  an  awful  Nod, 

By  daily  Miracles  declar'd  a  God  : 

He  blinds  the  Wise,  gives  Bye-sight  to  the  Blind 

And  moulds  and  stamps  a-new  the  Lover's  Mind. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Some  Gentlemen  of  Leisure 

exhaust  their  Treasure 

in  too  much  Pleasure. 
Tho'  the  Weather's  freezing  Cold 
The  hardy  Soldier's  brave  and  bold. 

FEBRUARY. 

A  great  Strife,  to  save  a  Life. 

How  happy  are  they 
Who've  not  been  led  astray. 
Many  quake  for  fear 
Conscious  of  some  Danger  near. 

What  vile  Projects  are   now  a  hatching  by  wicked   Men  at  Home  & 
Abroad. 

Some  Talk  of  Peace. 

MARCH. 

You'll  believe  me  if  I  say, 

The  Winter  begins  to  break  away. 
A  mighty  Flood  of  purple  Blood 
From  Traitor's  Hearts  proceed, 
Which  almost  swells  the  Conscious  Tweed. 
Money  flys  about,  and  how  many  fly  after  it. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1746.  191 


APRIL. 

A  sturdy  strong  Lubber  proves  a  shameful  Coward. 
Tydings  from  afar,  both  good  and  bad ; 
Some  mourn  &  weep,  while  some  are  glad. 
Cold  Boreas  now  his  cruel  Rage  lays  by 
And  gentle  Zephyrs  fan  the  chearful  Skie. 


Wars  and  Fears  still  fill  our  Ears. 

The  Winter's  past,  the  Winds  and  Tempests  fly 
The  Sun  adorns  the  Field,  and  brightens  all  the  Sky. 

JUNE. 

The  Oath  of  Abjuration  continues  still  in  Fashion. 

The  Lord  Reluctant  sends  disastrous  Times 
To  purge  the  guilty  Nations  of  their  Crimes. 

JULY. 

Now  make  your  Hay,  whilst  you  may. 

The  French  have  once  more  brought  up  the  old  Fashion 
Of  Gallows's  and  Scaffolds  in  the  English  Nation. 
Love  seldom  haunts  the  Breast  where  Learning  lies. 
And  Venus  sets,  e're  Mercury  can  rise. 

AUGUST. 

Hot  catching  Weather  tho'  none  but  Hay-makers  and  Brick-makers 
need  complain. 

Now  the  Generous  may  expect  an  ample  Reward. 

SEPTEMBER. 

How  soon  there's  made,  a  Turn  in  Trade ! 
Trifles  many  do  pursue, 
Having  nothing  else  in  View. 
This  Month  affords  a  mighty  Storm 
Which  may  do  the  Sailor  harm. 
See  how  the  cruel  Frost  has  nipt, 
The  Flowers  that  were  a  long  while  kept. 

OCTOBER. 

Nothing  will  do  for  Madam's  Living 
But  Turkeys,  Geese  and  Fowls  and  such  like  picking. 
Now  something  strange  may  bring  about  a  happy  Change. 


192  ALMANACK  FOR  1746. 

NOVEMBER. 

Powder-Plot  is  not  forgot : 
'Twill  be  observ'd  by  many  a  Sot. 
A  mighty  Struggle,  as  tho'  for  Life, 
How  to  keep,  and  please  a  Wife. 
It  can't  but  be  expected, 
That  what's  been  long  neglected 
Will  now  be  rejected. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Moon  teaches  us  the  right  Way, 
From  the  Knees  to  the  Legs,  not  the  contrary. 
The  Weather  now  is  very  Cold 
Which  makes  some  very  apt  to  Scold, 
And  if  they  should  fall  out  and  Fight, 
The  Lawyers  may  get  something  by't. 
The  Miser  and  the  Sot 
Together  have  got, 
To  drink  a  Pot. 


UPON  THE  I7TH  DAY  OF  JUNE,  1745.     THE  DAY  THAT  LOUISBOURG  WAS 
REDUCED  TO  THE  OBEDIENCE  OF  THE  CROWN  OF  GREAT  BRITAIN. 

Bright  Hesperus,  the  Harbinger  of  Day, 
Smil'd  gently  down  on  Shirley's  prosperous  Sway, 
The  crowding  Years  roll'd  swiftly  on  to  view 
The  glorious  Adlions  He  was  born  to  do  : 
Time  urg'd  their  speed  till  this  important  Day ; 
But  now  Dame  Nature  seems  to  ask  a  stay. 
The  Prince  of  Light  rode  in  his  burning  Car, 
To  see  the  Overtures  of  Peace  and  War, 
Around  the  World ;  and  bade  his  Charioteer, 
(Who  marks  the  Periods  of  each  Month  and  Year) 
Rein  in  his  Steeds,  and  rest  upon  high  Noon 
To  view  our  Victory  at  Cape-Breton. 


THE  PERSECUTOR'S  HELJy.  BY  AN  UNKNOWN  HAND. 

A  miserable  Hell, 

The  execrable  Persecutor  finds, 

No  Spirit  howls  among  the  Shades  below, 

More  damn'd,  more  fierce,  nor  more  a  Fiend  than  he 

Aloud  he  Heav'n,  and  Holiness  blasphemes, 


ALMANACK  FOR  1746.  193 

While  all  his  Enmity  to  Good  appears, 

His  Enmity  to  Good ;  once  falsely  call'd 

Religious  Warmth,  and  charitable  Zeal. 

On  high  beyond  th'  unpassable  Abyss, 

To  aggravate  his  righteous  Doom  he  views, 

The  blissful  Realms,  and  there  th'  I—    — t, 

The  visionary,  the  deluded  Saint 

By  him  so  often  hated,  wrong'd,  and  scorn'd, 

So  often  curs'd,  and  damn'd,  and  banish'd  thence, 

He  sees  him  there  possest  of  all  that  Heav'n, 

Those  Glories,  those  immortal  Joys,  which  he 

The  Orthodox,  unerring  Catholick, 

With  all  his  Charity,  and  burning  Zeal 

Against  Enthusiasm  poor  Soul  has  lost. 


A  DIALOGUE  BETWEEN  A  SCHOLAR  AND  A  CLOWN. 

Clown.  Sir,  Altho'  I  don't  know  what  Clasp  you  are  in,  I  understand 
you  are  a  Scholard,  I  wou'd  therefore  pop  a  plain  Question  to  you,  and 
shall  be  glad  of  your  Dissolution  as  soon  as  I  have  done  ? 

Scho.  In  mercy  then  I  hope  you  will  not  have  done  this  forty  Years, 
but  trusting  (thro'  the  strength  of  a  good  Constitution)  that  your  Question 
will  not  kill  me  right  out  of  hand  I'll  venture  to  hear  it,  so  please  to  Name 
it  Sir. 

Clown.  Why  my  Neighbour  Vulcan  put  his  Son  out  to  Coledge  to 
learn  to  be  a  Minister,  he  was  an  honest  Lad,  and  us'd  to  speak  the  Truth, 
but  now  he  tells  me  the  World  turns  round,  and  that  the  Sun  and  Stars 
stand  stock  still  in  the  Skies  :  He  says  too  that  all  the  Scolards  and  Minis 
ters  believe  that  the  World  turns  round,  for  my  part  I  think  the  Ministers 
ought  to  be  turn'd  out  of  their  Pulpits  if  they  maintain  such  wicked 
Doctrines ;  but  the  Question  is  this,  Whether  you  don't  read  conjuring 
Books  at  Coledge  that  bewitches  you  into  such  an  Opinion  ? 

Sch.  Our  Capacities  are  enlarg'd  by  our  Education  at  Colledge  to  see 
the  Reasonableness  of  such  an  Opinion,  which  you  can't  do  for  want  of  our 
Advantages. 

Cl.  I  can  tell  you  that  a  Cow  is  roundest  when  she  is  licking  her ; 

that  a  Goose  hast  most  Feathers  on  her  back  when  the  Gander  is  on  her ; 
but  you,  to  go  a  peg  higher  in  your  Pretences  to  Knowledge,  tell  us  the 
World  turns  round,  and  because  we  han't  Learning  to  conspute  with  you, 
you  wou'd  have  us  believe  all  you  say  is  true  ? 

Sch.  It  is  demonstrably  true  from  the  Eclipses  of  the  Satelities  of 
Jupiter,  that  Light  is  not  instantaneous,  but  propogated  by  a  progressive 
Motion,  and  is  7  min.  and  5  sec.  coming  from  the  Sun  to  this  Earth,  and 
if  the  fixed  Stars  were  not  as  much  farther  from  the  Earth,  than  the  Sun, 


194  ALMANACK  FOR  1746. 

as  7  Years  is  more  than  7  inin.  and  5  sec.  we  could  discern  their  Parallaxes, 
which  we  can't  do  ;  &  if  the  fixed  Stars  move  round  the  Earth  in  24  Hours, 
their  Distance  from  the  Earth  is  but  the  semi-Diameter  of  that  Circle  they 
describe  in  24  Hours ;  and  it  is  unlikely  that  they  themselves  should  move 
a  Space  in  24  Hours  that  their  Light  could  not  accomplish  in  42  Years,  & 
move  as  fast  too  as  the  Light  of  the  Sun  in  coming  to  the  Earth  in  7  min. 
&  5  sec. 


OSl  1746. — The  Doctor  has  evidently  crept  into  some  favor 
as  an  Astrologer,  and  the  opening  verse  on  title  page  would  seem  to  indi 
cate  that  his  services  had  been  demanded  by  a  portion  of  his  constituents 
to  forecast  the  future  for  them  in  various  ways. 

To  the  courteous  reader  a  few  lines  are  dedicated  to  cover  an  allusion 
to  his  private  affairs  which  seem  to  go  badly  as  the  author's  remarks  imply, 
and  the  same  trouble  appears  to  drag  as  wearily  through  the  courts  as  it 
does  through  a  part  of  the  monthly  verses,  a  portion  of  which  are 
attributed  to  Milton,  who  appears  to  sympathize  with  the  Doctor's  legal 
difficulties. 

"  Grim  visag'd  War  "  now  shows  "  his  wrinkled  front."  The  French 
and  Indian  complication  busies  the  Colonies,  while  "  Charlie  over  the 
Water"  keeps  the  home  government  busy  on  the  Scottish  border,  and  the 
April  verses  sound  the  "  rattling  clangor." 

At  the  conclusion  Shirley's  victory  at  the  reduction  of  Louisbourg  is 
celebrated  in  verse,  and  an  "  Unknown  Hand  "  administers  an  introduction 
to  the  "Persecutor's  Hell"  —  all  of  which  is  germane  to  the  general 
tendency  of  the  author's  thoughts. 

A  characteristic  dialogue  between  a  Scholar  and  a  Clown  drops  the 
curtain  on  the  dying  year. 

The  "  squibs  "  are  as  usual  interesting,  and  savor  of  the  times  and  the 
writer.  Local,  personal,  political,  and  war  matters,  both  at  home  and 
abroad,  furnish  the  themes  for  the  satirist  and  the  marks  to  be  shot  at. 
The  fate  of  "  Prince  Charlie's  "  friends  is  made  apparent  under  March  and 
July,  and  the  "  Powder  Plot  "  gives  occasion  for  by-drinking  in  November 
as  formerly. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1747.  195 

THE   ALMANACK   FOR    i747 


By  Nathanael  Ames. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 


Printed  by  JOHN  DRAPER  for  the  BOOKSELLERS. 


1747. 

Above  Five  Thousand  Times  the  glorious  Sun        ~| 
His  Annual  Circuit  round  the  skies  has  run 
Since  this  our  World  and  all  things  in't  begun. 
Strange  Revolutions  in  the  Time  have  been : 
Strange  Things  indeed  has  the  last  Century  seen, 
King  Charles  dethron'd,  surprizing  Cromwell  Reign 
A  second  Charles  the  Regal  Scepter  gain  : 
Hanover's  House  established  on  the  Throne, 
The  nation  that  illustrious  offspring  own, 
The  last  Year  saw  a  grand  rebellious  Rout, 
And  glorious  WII,IJAM  root  those  Rebels  out. 
The  Year  to  come  shall  wondrous  Things  behold, 
But  what  ?  to  me  the  Stars  have  not  foretold  : 


The  Eclipses  of  the  Moon  this  Year  are  both  remarkable, 
the  last  of  which,  according  to  Astrological  Rules,  portends 
Storms  and  Tempests,  and  losses  by  Sea,  and  diseases  that  hurt 
Old  People  most.' 


JANUARY. 

The  Plants  that  are  to  rise  the  Year  to  come 
In  Embrio  lie  enclos'd  in  Tellus  Womb  ; 
Unmov'd  as  yet  by  the  prolifick  Sun, 
Lake  Nature's-Seed  before  the  World  began. 

FEBRUARY. 

Mid-Summer's  Beauties  deck  th'  Ecliptick  Road, 
Where  Ph&bus  rides  in  Glory  like  a  god : 


196  ALMANACK    FOR    1747- 

He's  been  awhile  to  bless  the  distant  South, 
And  now  is  back  returning  to  the  North. 


MARCH. 


Sol  rarifys  the  Blood  of  Man  and  Beast, 
Whereby  their  conick  Arteries  are  prest : 
And  where  the  Blood's  in  flam 'd  by  being  pent, 
L/et  vene-Sec"lion  give  sufficient  Vent. 


APRIL. 


Great  Men  have  most  to  fear,  and  least  to  gain, 
Which  fills  their  mighty  Minds  with  anxious  Pain : 
The  Farmer  in  his  Cot  enjoys  more  Bliss, 
With's  little  Children  climbing  for  a  Kiss. 

MAY. 

My  Lady  MA  Y  doth  now  inspire 
Mirth  and  Youth  and  warm  Desire. 
Woods  and  Groves  are  of  her  dressing  ; 
Hill  and  Dale  do  boast  her  Blessing. 

JUNE. 

Some  praise  at  Morning,  what  they  blame  at  Night ; 
But  always  think  the  last  Opinion  right : 
Whilst  their  weak  Heads,  like  Towns  unfortify'd, 
'Twixt  Sense  and  Nonsense  daily  change  their  Side. 

JULY. 

'Tis  now  the  Shepherds  shun  the  noon  Day  heat, 
And  lowing  Herds  to  murmuring  Brooks  retreat : 
And  sultry  Syrius  burns  the  thirsty  Plains, 
And  Choler  in  each  Constitution  reigns. 

AUGUST. 

Sol  join'd  with  Syrius  wonderously  prevails, 
And  from  the  Earth  her  central  Fire  exhales ; 
Sulphur  and  Nitre  mix  in  various  Forms, 
Flash  from  the  Skies,  and  fall  in  Thunder  Storms. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Sol  through  the  Southern  Signs  now  takes  his  Way, 
And  what  he  adds  to  Night  steals  from  each  Day : 
As  He  declines,  to  close  the  Pores  begin, 
And  shut  a  Thousand  hot  Diseases  in. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1747.  197 

OCTOBER. 

Cold  Nights  advance  the  Summer  Heats  decay 
And  all  her  verdant  Beauties  fade  away. 
The  Birds  with  all  their  pleasing  Notes  are  gone, 
And  Nature  mourns  the  Absence  of  the  Sun. 

NOVEMBER. 

Those  hardy  Plants  that  still  remain  alive 
Look  cold  and  shrunk  like  man  at  ninety-five 
Boreas  like  Death,  has  strip'd  'em  of  their  Charms, 
And  hugs  'em  mortal  in  his  frozen  arms. 

DECEMBER. 

Each  verdant  Plant  that  grew  the  Summer  past, 
In  morning  frosty  sweats  expir'd  at  last. 
The  Snow  like  winding-Sheets  fall  from  the  Skies, 
And  nature  all  like  Death  in  Ruin  lies. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Many  Things  are  frozen. 

All  things  are  cold,  the  young  Ladies  excepted. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  Farmer  now's  resolv'd  he  will  not  freeze 

While  he  has  Pipes,  Tobacco,  Fire,  with  good  Bread  &  Cheese. 

MARCH. 

A  great  Fight  but  no  Blood-shed, 

A  foul  Sunday  and  a  fair  Monday. 

And  now  out  the  Frogs  peep 

Which  forebodes  that  Alewives  will  be  cheap. 

APRIL. 

NOWT  there  may  be  something  pleasing  to  the  Eye,  as  there  has  been 
to  the  Ear. 

From  low  Estate  a  Man  is  great. 

A  Look  that's  cross  and  a  tongue  that  raves,  spoils  a  Beauty. 

Expect  to  hear  of  damage  done  by  Fire,  and  other  unlucky  Accidents 
in  the  wide  World. 


198  ALMANACK    FOR    1747. 

MAY. 

The  Beggar  in  liis  Rags, 
Is  better  than  a  miser  with  his  Bags. 
How  pleasant  now  the  air  ! 
How  gay  the  Flower  there  ! 
How  fond  the  Lady  fair. 
A  Matter  of  Difficulty,  is  now  made  easy. 

JUNE- 

A  Scene  as  dark  as  night 
In  the  End  turns  out  bright. 
Pleasure,  with  Concern,  you  may  discern  in  many  Faces  now. 

JULY. 

Breezes  which  refresh  the  Ladies  fair 
Who  in  the  Evening  walk  to  take  the  Air. 

AUGUST. 

The  Devourer  of  Fruit  unripe   now,  must   expect   to   pay   dearly  for 
it  by'nd  by. 

OCTOBER. 

Sol  to  the  Southward  hasts  away 

And  Winter  draws  nearer  ev'ry  Day. 
All  Nature  appears  to  vote  for  Thunder  and  Winds 
Now  prepare,  for  Winter's  near. 

NOVEMBER. 

Many  unlucky  Accidents. 
A  memorable  Battle  fought  Even  Now ! 
How  much  ado  about  Trifles,  while  greater  Matters  are  neglected. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Dame  that's  old 
Now  feels  the  cold, 
Which  makes  her  scold. 

Whilst  we  are  frozen  up  in  the  dead  of  winter,  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope 
rejoices  in  the  highth  of  Summer. 


AN  ESSAY  ON  CONJURATION  &  WITCHCRAFT. 

Conjuration,  according  to  BAILEY'S  Definition  of  the  Word, 
signify's  a  personal  dealing  with  the  Devil,  to  know  any  Secret, 
or  compass  any  Design.  Many  Persons  in  their  Study  of  Nature 


ALMANACK    FOR    1747.  IQ9 

have  div'd  so  far  above  the  Apprehension  of  the  Vulgar,  that 
they  have  been  believed  to  be  Necromancers,  Magicians,  &c. 
But  the  Mistake  lays  in  the  People's  Ignorance,  and  not  in  the 
other's  Studies.  That  human  Creatures  should  have  actual 
Society  and  Communion  with  spiritual  Daemons  is  a  strange 
Thing.  All  Men  are  gaping  after  Novelties.  Our  Mathematical 
Demonstrations  please  us  not  so  much  because  our  Discoveries 
are  certain,  as  because  they  are  new.  What  we  know,  we  slight; 
and  are  fond  of  believing  Articles  that  are  most  beyond  all 
Belief.  They,  among  the  Heathen,  who  made  too  good  a  Use  of 
their  Reason,  to  be  deceived  themselves,  were  admitted  into  the 
Number  of  holy  Sorcerers,  as  they  were  called,  and  make  a  gain 
ful  Market  of  the  Credulity  of  their  Fellow-Creatures.  Some 
Writings  father'd  upon  Cornelius  Agryppa,  affirm,  that  if  you 
call  upon  Prince  Satan  by  some  of  his  Titles  of  Honour,  in  cer 
tain  liesure  Hours,  he'll  appear  to  you  with 

"  Flaming  Eyes  and  Face  as  black  as  Soot, 
A  Pair  of  mighty  Horns  and  Cloven  Foot." 

But  we  are  not  to  believe  such  Reports,  unless  the  Evidence 
of  the  Truth  of  the  Fact  be  equal  to  the  Strangeness  of  the 
Thing. — If  there  be  an  old  Woman  in  a  Parish1  prodigious  ugly, 
her  Eyes  hollow  and  red,  her  Face  shrivel'd  up,  that  goes  double, 
and  her  Voice  trembles,  she  is  a  Witch  forsooth :  but  the  hand 
some  young  Girls  are  never  suspected:  as  tho'  Satan  took  a 
Delight  in  the  Dry  Sticks  of  Humane  Nature,  and  would  select 
the  most  neglected  Creature  in  the  humane  Species  to  be  his 
Privy-  Counsellor. 


VICTORY  IMPIvOR'D  FOR  SUCCESS  AGAINST  THE  FRENCH  IN  AMERICA. 

Hail,  VICTORY  !  thy  Aid  we  still  implore, 
Thy  Britain  conquers  ;  send  her  Thunder  o'er  : 
We  only  for  her  moving  Castles  wait ; 
But  they,  alas !  have  been  detain 'd  by  Fate. 
Great  Britain"1  s  Forests  float  upon  the  Floods, 
And  dreadful  Lions  dwell  within  those  Woods : 
Awake  their  sleeping  Fury,  make  'em  roar, 
And  all  the  Beasts  on  Canadensis  Shore 

1  Humourist. 


2oo  ALMANACK  FOR  1747. 

Shall  fear,  and  all  their  Native  Rage  forsake, 

And  Trembling  seize  those  Coasts,  ev'n  to  Quebeck. 

When  late  round  Louisbourg's  strong  Walls  we  made 

By  Land  and  Sea,  a  terrible  Blockade. 

The  arduous  Trumpet,  Instrument  of  Fame 

And  thund'ring  Cannon,  call'd  upon  thy  Name  : 

The  silly  French  their  fond  Devotion  paid 

To  old  dry  Bones,  which  Priests  have  holy  made : 

Our  bursting  Bombs,  in  Tracts  of  Fire  and  Smoke, 

The  Skies  ascend,  and  thy  kind  Aid  invoke ; 

Lo,  th'  Earth  groan'd  with  many  a  gaping  Wound, 

Whilst  the  Air  trembl'd  at  the  awful  Sound : 

Jove  saw  his  Thunder  mimick'd  here  below 

Whilst  there  strong  Walls  repuls'd  each  threat'ning  Blow 

And  ere  the  dreadful  Hurricane  blew  o'er 

He  took  the  Scales  in  his  eternal  Store, 

Prepar'd  to  weigh  the  Fate  of  W7arring  Kings : 

And  now  the  great  decisive  Period  brings : 

The  Gods  attend,  th'  important  Case  is  try'd, 

And  the  Disputants  put  one  in  each  Side ; 

When,  lo,  the  Beam  in  Equilibrio  stands, 

Till  Victory  turn'd  the  Scale  with  her  own  Hands. 

The  Gods  for  France  in  high  resentment  cry'd, 

Victory  unfairly  join'd  on  our  Side 

Proud  of  thy  special  Favours  heretofore 

Like  Beggars  once  indulg'd,  we  ask  for  more. 

Thou  know'st  which  Way  the  ridged  Plates  incline  \ 

If  on  our  Side,  give  one  propitious  Sign 

And,  lo,  Ten  Thousand  bold  Americans  will  join,    j 

With  chearful  Hearts  to  Extirpate  a  Race 

Of  superstitious  Papists  false  and  Base. 

Octob.  1 8,  1746. 


OH  1747* — The  muse  recounts  the  glories  of  the  previous 
five  thousand  years  in  short-hand,  and  particularly  sounds  the  triumphant 
changes  in  the  home  government  of  the  preceding  hundred  years; 
rejoicing  over  the  discomfiture  of  the  Scottish  rebellion,  with  an  especial 
allusion  to  William,  Duke  of  Cumberland,  who  fought  the  decisive  battle 
of  Culloden  near  Inverness,  April  16,1746,  and  predicting  future  "  won 
drous  things  "  to  come  to  pass. 

The  monthly  jingles  savor  of  Arcadia  and  natural  phenomena,  and  the 
"  Essay  on  Conjuration  and  Witchcraft"  in  the  physician's  happy  manner 
is  a  short  and  excellent  specimen  of  humorous  reading. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1748.  201 

An  heroic  Poem  to  Victory  in  supplication  for  the  success  of  the 
British  arms,  and  the  extirpation  of  the  Gauls  from  America,  very  appro 
priately  forms  the  valedictory  for  this  busy  year,  while  the  merry  morsels 
in  the  meteorological  notes  continue  as  readable  as  beforetime. 


THE     ALMANACK     FOR     1748 


By  NATHANAEL  AMES. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 

Printed  by  J.  DRAPER  ;  for  the  BOOKSELLERS. 
Price  Sixteen  Pence  Single,  &  Ten  Shillings  per  Dozen. 


Ten  Thousand  Suns,  prodigious  Globes  of  Light, 
At  once  in  broad  Dimensions  strike  our  Sight ; 
Millions  behind  in  the  remoter  Skies 
Appear  but  Spangles  to  our  wearied  Eyes  ; 
And  when  our  wearied  Eyes  want  further  Strength, 
To  pierce  the  Void's  immeasureable  Length, 
Our  vigorous  tow'ring  Thoughts  still  further  fly, 
And  still  remoter  flaming  Worlds  descry. 


THE  DIFFERENCE  BETWEEN  TO-DAY  AND  TO-MORROW. 

To  Day  Marts  dress'd  in  Gold  and  Silver  bright : 
Wrapt  in  a  Shrowd  before  To  morrow  Night. 
To-day  he's  feeding  on  delicious  Food ; 
To-morrow  dead  ;  unable  to  do  good. 
To-day  he's  nice  and  scorns  to  feed  on  Crumbs : 
To-morrow  he's  himself  a  Dish  for  Worms. 
To-day  he's  grand,  majestick,  all  Delight ; 
Gastful  and  pale,  before  To-morrow  Night. 
True,  as  the  Scriptures  say,  MAN'S  LIFE  A  SPAN. 
The  present  Moment  is  the  LIFE  q/~MAN. 


202  ALMANACK    FOR    1748. 

JANUARY. 

Nectorian  Cyder  now,  with  Pork  and  Beef, 
Gives  many  an  aching  Stomach  great  Relief; 
And  he  that  hasn't  these,  nor  Money  in  his  Purse, 
His  Case  is  bad,  and's  likely  to  be  worse. 

FEBRUARY. 

Philosopher,  What  Art  japans  the  Bow? 

What  Looms  prepare  and  weave  the  fleecy  snow? 

In  what  tight  Mills  the  icy  Balls  are  ground  ? 

Why  small  or  larger  made?     Why  white  and  round  ? 

MARCH. 

The  Winds,  while  yet  unfledg'd  in  Woods  they  lie 
In  Whispers  first  their  tender  Voices  try, 
Then  issue  on  the  Main  with  bell'wing  Rage, 
And  Storms  to  trembling  Mariners  presage. 

APRIL. 

Consuming  Winter's  gone,  the  Earth  hath  lost 
Her  snow-white  Robes,  and  now  no  more  the  Frost 
Candies  the  Grass,  or  casts  an  icy  Cream 
Upon  the  silver  Lake  and  chrystal  Stream. 

MAY. 

MAY  like  Arabia  breathes,  her  Morning  Flowers 
New-sweetened  with  Dew  of  Twilight  Showers, 
Smells  like  the  /Vztf?;//.r-Nest,  when  she  her  Waine 
Of  Age  repairs,  and  sows  herself  again. 

JUNE. 

Purchasing  Riches  with  our  Time  and  Care, 
We  lose  our  Freedom  in  a  gilded  Snare, 
In  vain  our  Fields  and  Flocks  increase  our  Store, 
If  our  abundance  makes  us  wish  for  more. 

JULY. 

Now  wild  Ingredients  are  together  cramm'd 

And  into  cloudy  Cannons  closely  ramm'd; 

At  whose  dread  Roar  fierce  Balls  and  Fires  are  hurled, 

Omens  of  that  that  must  calcine  the  World. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1748.  203 


AUGUST. 


The  mellow  Pears  and  Apples  fall  apace, 

The  Mellon  ripens  on  the  creeping  Vine, 

A  Virgin  Blush  now  paints  the  Rare-ripe's  Face, 

With  the  rich  Load  the  burthen'd  Limbs  decline. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Now  the  ccelestial  Ballance  weighs  the  Light, 
Giving  an  equal  Length  to  Day  and  Night ; 
And  the  clear  Air  keeps  a  Divided  Seat, 
Affording  sometimes  Cold,  and  sometimes  Heat. 

OCTOBER. 

Heaven's  Candidates  go  cloath'd  with  foul  Disguise, 
And  Heaven's  Reports  are  damn'd  for  senceless  lies : 
Tremendous  Mysteries  are  (so  Hell  prevails) 
Lampoon'd  for  Jargon  and  fantastic  Tales. 

NOVEMBER. 

Oh !  why  did  Heaven  leave  Man  so  weak  Defence 

To  trust  frail  Reason  with  the  Rule  of  Sense  ? 

'  Tis  overpois'd  and  kick'd  up  in  the  Air, 

While  Sense  weighs  down  the  Scale,  and  keeps  it  there. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Trees  to  wear  their  leavy  Hatts  forbear, 
In  Reverence  to  old  Winter's  silver  Hair ; 
From  Capricorn's  cold  Tropick  Soiy  looks  pale, 
And  Boreas  beats  the  naked  Earth  with  Hail. 


INTERLINED  \VISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Wood  burns  now  quicker  than  it  grows. 

A  Crafty  Piece  of  Mischief  discovered. 

A  Bad  State,  an  empty  Purse,  and  no  Credit,  Food  or  Cloaths. 

FEBRUARY. 

Magna  quartile  Saturn  &  Jupiter  continues  a  long  while  with  sextile 
fupiter  &  Venus. 

Europe  has  conceiv'd  and  is  big  with  Propositions  of  Peace,  but  alas  ! 
they  prove  Abortive  to  the  great  Disappointment  of  some  Politicians. 


204  ALMANACK  FOR  1748. 


MARCH. 


Mischief  to  be  done  by  the  Indian  Crew,  and  many  unlucky  Accidents. 

To  War  and  Arm  !  is  yet  th'  alarm. 

Keep  a  strict  lookout,  the  Enemy's  about. 

Take  care  of  your  Buildings. 


APRIL. 

A  bouncing,  imperious  Hussy  falls  to  the  Ground  without  Pity. 
A  Mixture  of  Strange  Advices. 

Boreas  begins  six  months  exhile, 

And  Infant-Spring  begins  to  smile. 

MAY. 

Shear  not  your  Sheep  till  this  cold  storm  is  past. 
A  fine  Projection  afoot. 

JUNE. 

It  is  a  Thing  that's  indisputable, 
Women,  like  winds,  are  very  mutuable. 

Bxtream  cold  and  violent  Snow  Storms  near  the  Straits  of  Magellan 
&  Cape  Horn. 

JULY. 

Many  Schemes  afoot  but  Self  Intrest  spoils  all. 
A  bloody  Fight  may  happen  in  the  Night. 

Some  signs  of  Rain,  if  they  fail,  a  Drought  follows.  So,  or  not,  many 
will  complain. 

Your  Spirits  to  refresh  :  take  the  Morning  Air — youl  find  it  best. 

AUGUST. 

If  you  neglect  your  Hay  now,  you  may  have  a  bad  Season  for  it 
by'nd  by. 

Sailors,  look  out  sharp  ! 

Beware  of  eating  too  much  raw  Fruit   and  catching  Sudden  Colds. 

Some  are  burden'd  with  Paper  Money,  while  others  are  groaning  for 
want  of  it. 

SEPTEMBER. 

The  Demand  for  Things  unnecessary,  how  much  greater  than  for  those 
we  can't  do  without ! 

Rum,  Sugar,  Tobacco,  Tea,  Lemmons  &  Limes, 

How  excessively  used,  these  later  Times. 
The  Husbandman  rejoices  in  gathering  the  Fruits  of  his  Labour. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1748.  205 


OCTOBER. 

Many  lose  more  in  a  Day,  than  others  gain  in  a  Year. 
The  Stone-Walls  yet  remain  firm,  which  can't  be  stumbled  over  by  all 
the  Power,  Riches,  Intreagues  or  Policy  of  France,  to  it's  great  Vexation. 

NOVEMBER. 

If  you  can  get  no  more ; 

besure,  lay  in  your  Winter  Store. 
More  sleeping  than  working. 
More  quake  for  cold  than  fear  of  an  Enemy. 
Tydings  come  round  about  of  Things  unexpected. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Geese  and  Turkeys  fall  a  sacrifice  in  great  numbers. 
Now  every  hoary-headed  Twig 
Doth  wear  a  snowy  Perriwig. 
Another  Year  now  is  gone  ; 
But  ah  !  how  little  have  we  done  ! 


NOTE. — On  the  margins  of  the  Almanack  in  my  possession  are  the 
following  memoranda  for  1748:    (Ed.} 

In  the  Winter  1747-8  fell  Thirty  two  Snows. 

Jan.  6.     South  Winds  &  Rain  and  Sharp  Thunder  &  Lightning. 

March  3oth.     Frogs  Croak.     3ist,  Peep. 

March  2ist.     a  Robin  Sang. 

24th.    Blue  Bird  Sang, 
the  27th.    Spring  Bird  Sang. 
April  i9th.     Sett  out  120  Appel-Trees. 

28th.     Was  the  Annual  Fast. 

May  1 7th.     in  ye  Morning  was  a  Frost  but  did  not  much  hurt. 
June    i st.     after  a  very  dry  time  a  Shower  of  Rain. 

2ist.     in  ye  afternoon  began  to  hay. 

Aug.  7th.  left  the  Meeting  House  to  go  to  Relieve  ye  Inhabitants  of 
Petersham  from  ye  Indians :  went  as  far  as  Brookefield  and 
then  Return'^  Home. 

loth  &  nth.    Each  Morning  was  a  hard  Frost  in  low  Land. 
September  28th.     went  &  see  Mr  Blunt  ordain'd  over  the  Separates. 
October.     The  last  week  in  this  Month  my  Chimneys  were  Built  by  Ben 
jamin  Barney. 


206  ALMANACK    FOR    1748. 

The  very  Position  of  the  Planetary  Circles  shews,  that  this 
Earth  is  of  the  same  Sort  with  the  Rest  of  the  Planets  of  this 
System  that  revolve  about  our  Sun.  The  Times  they  spend  in 
their  Revolution  about  the  Sun  is  in  a  fix'd  certain  Proportion 
to  their  Distances  from  the  Sun.  If  we  could  be  assur'd  of  but 
one  Comet,  what  it  was  that  is  the  Cause  of  that  strange  Appear 
ance,  Should  we  not  make  that  a  Standard  to  judge  of  all  others 
by?  Since  then  we  are  so  well  acquainted  with  one  of  these 
Planets,  ( viz.  The  Earth  on  which  we  live,)  may  we  not  judge 
of  the  rest  by  this  one  ?  '  Tis  an  Argument  of  no  small  Weight 
that  is  fetch'd  from  Relation  and  Likeness ;  and  to  Reason  from 
what  we  see,  and  are  sure  of,  to  what  we  cannot,  is  no  false 
Logick.  This  Earth  appears  to  them  a  Star,  as  they  do  to  us : 
They  are  like  this  Earth  solid  round  Bodies ;  and  have  no  Light 
but  what  they  receive  from  the  Sun :  They  have  Days  and 
Nights,  which  is  discovered  by  their  Rotation  upon  their  own 
axis  like  this  Earth :  They  have  their  Revolution  of  Years 
like  this  Earth:  Jupiter  has,  like  this  Earth,  an  Atmosphere, 
Clouds  and  Vapours,  which  are  discovered  by  the  help  of 
Telescopes.  As  Saturn  and  Jupiter  are  at  a  far  greater  Distance 
from  the  Sun  than  this  Earth,  How  much  more  of  the  Sun's 
Light  have  they  reflected  to  them  by  Moons  than  we  have? 
Saturn  has  Five  Moons ;  Jupiter  Four :  This  is  no  imaginary 
Thing;  We  are  able  before-hand  to  calculate  the  Eclipses  of 
some  of  these  Moons  with  as  great  Exactness  as  our  own.  They 
revolve  about  their  respective  Planets,  as  our  Moon  revolves 
about  this  Earth:  The  First  of  Jupiter's  Moons  revolves  about 
him  in  i  Day,  18  Hours,  28  Minutes,  36  Seconds;  the  Second 
spends  3  Days,  13  Hours,  13  Min,  52  Sec.  in  going  round  him  ; 
the  Third  Moon,  7  days,  3  Hours,  59  Min.  40  Sec. ;  the  Fourth 
Moon,  1 6  Days,  18  Hours,  5  Min.  6  Sec.  :  The  innermost  of 
Saturn's  Moons  moves  round  him  in  i  Day,  21  Hours,  18  Min. 
31  Sec.  ;  the  Second  in  2  Days,  17  Hours,  41  Min.  27  Sec. ;  the 
Third  in  4  Days,  13  Hours,  47  Min.  16  Sec. ;  the  Fourth  in  15 
Days,  22  Hours,  41  Min.  n  Sec. ;  the  Fifth  in  79  Days,  7  Hours, 
53  Min.  57  Sec. ;  This  Computation  is  made  as  we  measure 
Time  by  our  Days  and  Hours.  Besides  these  Moons  Saturn 
has  a  wonderful  Ring,  that  surrounds  his  Globe  at  some  Distance, 
of  which  the  Poet  says, 


ALMANACK    FOR    1748.  207 

How  richly's  this  grave  Wanderer  drest, 

With  an  illustrious  Ring,  above  the  rest. 

Around  it  roles,  makes  all  its  Parts  appear, 

Yet  lies  obscur'd  in  Light  for  half  the  Year. 

What  different  Office  it  at  once  can  play, 

Both  make  the  Night,  and  make  the  Dav  ? 

Its  circling  Pace  can  Life  retrieve, 

And  make  the  dying  Fluids  live. 

See  how  its  various  Phases,  Use  and  End, 

At  once  delight  the  wond'ring  natives,  &  be-friend  ! 

— And  rich  Philosophy  and  charming  Views  create. 

Now  should  we  allow  the  Planets  nothing  but  vast  Desarts, 
lifeless  and  inanimate  Stocks  and  Stones,  and  deprive  them  of 
those  Creatures  that  more  plainly  speak  their  Divine  Architect, 
we  should  sink  them  below  this  Earth  in  Beauty  and  Dignity. 
A  Thing  that  no  Reason  will  permit.  As  our  Earth  was  not 
made  only  to  twinkle  on  them  ;  so  the}7  were  made  for  nobler 
Ends  than  just  to  shine  on  us.  No  doubt  but  a  departed  Soul 
in  its  Journey  to  Heaven  may  say  of  these  Planetary  Worlds, 

I  see  what  natives  these  toss'd  Islands  bare, 
Natives  as  different  as  their  Climates  are  : 
Their  Studies,  Pleasures  and  Employs  I  see, 
How  much  more  happy  and  more  Pure  than  we  ? 
More  Heavenly  they;  more  fit  and  glad  to  raise, 
By  Love  and  Service,  their  Creator's  Praise. 


Oil  1748, — Again  the  time-honored  ode  to  the  Sun, — not 
only  our  Sun — but  "  more'ii  a  million,"  receive  the  homage  of  the  Muse  on 
the  first  page.  On  the  second  follows  an  explanation  of  "  the  difference 
between  today  and  tomorrow ;"  after  which  follows  the  monthly  rhymes, 
partaking  largely  of  the  "crazy  quilt"  feature.  Bacchus,  Philosophy, 
Boreas,  Neptune,  Arabia,  Croesus,  Calvinism,  Pomona,  all  figure  in  the 
poet's  teeming  brain,  and  their  various  attributes  committed  to  the  care  of 
each  monthly  page. 

Whether,  under  October,  the  Doctor  proposes  a  tilt  with  the  "  Fra 
ternity,"  I'm  not  able  to  say,  but  the  inability  of  the  Masonic  student  to  fit 
the  verse  to  anything  else,  might  reasonably  imagine  that  "  he  means  us" 

A  lesson  in  practical  Astronomy  constitutes  the  subject  of  the  annual 
essay,  with  a  considerable  portion  devoted  to  a  disquisition  on  the  satel 
lites  of  Jupiter  and  Saturn. 

Momus  occupies  his  usual  seat,  and  is  clothed  with  the  customary  cap 


208  ALMANACK    FOR    1749. 

and  bells.  The  wars  in  Europe  are  alluded  to — the  Indians  are  mentioned 
as  likely  to  be  troublesome — and  woman — lovely  woman  is  adverted  to 
after  the  set  manner.  Health  rules  are  prescribed  for  the  summer  months. 
The  money  market  discussed,  and  the  rage  for  foreign  productions 
remarked,  foreshadowing  the  events  leading  up  to  the  quarrel  with  the 
mother  country. 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR     1749 


By 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 


Printed  by  JDu  Draper,   for  the  Booksellers. 
Price  Eighteen  Pence  Single,  &  Twelve  Shillings  a  Dozen. 


No  Hero's  Ghosts,  with  Garments  roll'd  in  Blood, 
Majestick  stalk  ;  the  golden  Age's  renew'd  : 
No  hollow  Drums  in  Flanders  beat ;  the  Breath 
Of  brazen  Trumpets  ring  no  Peels  of  Death. 
The  milder  Stars  their  peaceful  Beams  affords 
And  sounding  Hammer  beats  the  wounding  Sword. 
To  Plow-Shears  now ;  Mars  must  to  Ceres  yield, 
And  exhil'd  PEACE  returns,  and  takes  the  Field. 


READER,  I  would  beg  leave  to  answer  the  Rumour  of  my 
not  making  an  Almanack  this  Year,  by  transcribing  a  few  Lines 
from  Mr.  POPE'S  Poem,  entitled,  The  Temple  of  Fame. 

"  The  flying  Rumours  gather'd  as  they  roll'd, 
"  Scarce  any  Tale  was  sooner  heard  than  told : 
"  And  all  who  told  it,  added  something  new ; 
"  And  all  who  heard  it,  made  Enlargements  too, 
"  In  ev'ry  Ear  it  spread ;  on  every  Tongue  it  grew : 


ALMANACK  FOR  1749.  209 

"  Thus  flying  East  and  West,  and  North  and  South, 
"  News  travel'd  with  Encrease  from  Mouth  to  Mouth. 

"  When  thus  ripe  Lyes  are  to  Perfection  sprung, 

"  Full  grown  and  fit  to  grace  a  mortal  Tongue ; 

"  Thro'  thousand  Vents  impatient  forth  they  flow, 

"  And  rush  in  Millions  on  the  World  below. 

"  Fame  sits  aloft,  and  points  them  out  their  Course, 

"  Their  Date  determines,  and  prescribes  their  Force : 

"  Some  to  Remain,  and  some  to  perish  soon, 

"  Or  wane  and  wax  alternate  like  the  Moon. 


JANUARY. 

In  genial  Winter  Swains  enjoy  their  Store, 
Forget  their  Hardships,  and  recruit  for  more, 
The  Farmer  to  full  Bowls  invites  his  Friends, 
And  what  he  got  with  Pain,  with  Pleasure  spends. 

Dryd.  Virgil. 

FEBRUARY. 

Pale  Fear  does  Things  so  like  a  Witch, 
'Tis  hard  t'  unriddle  which  is  which, 
That  makes  Men  in  the  Dark  see  Visions, 
And  hug  themselves  with  Apparitions  : 
And  when  their  Eyes  discover  least, 
Discern  the  subtlest  Object  best. 

Hndibras. 

MARCH. 

As  Orion's  Bands  dissolve,  the  Farmer  now 
With  wounding  Steel  gives  Earth  a  furrow'd  Brow, 
And  as  he  tugs  the  peaceful  Plow  along, 
Sweetens  his  Labour  with  some  Rural  Song. 

APRIL. 

Now  fruitful  Show'rs  abound,  and  pearly  Rains 
Descend  in  Silence,  to  refresh  the  Plains, 
And  swell  the  Roots  of  Plants  ;  the  Buds  put  forth 
And  Infant-Spring  lies  strug'ling  at  the  Birth. 


"V    And  In 
BelK    1 


MAY. 


Belu.    1  the  Beauties  of  UK-  flo\v'ry  Spring! 
Hark  !  how  the  Birds  among  the  Branches  sing  ! 
From  Heav'n  each  Night  Nectarian  Dews  descend, 
And  some  Delight  does  every  Sense  befriend. 


210  ALMANACK    FOR    1749. 

JUNE. 

The  Indian  Corn  sprung  up  begins  to  grow, 
And  Husbandmen  whet  up  their  Scythes  to  mow : 
The  Country  Maids  with  Sauce  to  Market  come, 
And  carry  Loads  of  tatter'd  Money  Home. 

JUI/Y. 

The  Sun  with  sultry  Syrius  now  doth  rise, 
Andfave's  red  Light'ning  flashes  from  the  Skies; 
The  angry  Gods  Heaven's  Armoury  open  flings, 
And  whizzing  Bolts  ride  forth  on  burning  Wings. 

AUGUST. 

Strange  Fires  enkindle  in  the  Nervous  Cell, 
Where  all  the  Springs  of  Sense  and  Motion  dwell : 
There  hidden  Deaths,  and  strange  Destructions  breed 
And  slow  convulsive  Spasms  thence  proceed. 

SEPTEMBER- 

Now  Nature's  strange  corroding  Fires  begin 
To  parch  and  fry  the  tender  Parts  within ; 
You  bright  Appollcfs  learned  Sons  display 
Your  skill  to  drive  these  torturing  Deaths  away. 

OCTOBER. 

The  trembling  Trees  from  green  to  yellow  turn, 
Their  Summer-Dress  by  cruel  Frost  is  torn : 
They'r  left  to  stand  uncloath'd  each  Winter  Day 
And  slow  Consumption  steels  their  Life  away. 

NOVEMBER. 

The  vegitable  Life  expires  with  Pain  ; 

In  hopes  to  live  another  Life  again, 

Their  Faith  in  future  vernal  Doom  they  prize 

Dead  Plants  in  Nature's  Resurrection  rise. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Earth  does  in  her  annual  Orbit  roll 
And  now  is  sheer'd  toward  the  Artick  Pole  : 
As  though  afraid  of  yonder  sloping  Sun. 
Time's  Page  is  full :  The  Aged  YEAR  is  done. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1749-  211 

INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Many  remarkable  unlucky  Accidents  happen  about  this  Time. 
If  there  was  less  debating  and  more  acting  'twould  be  better. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  Decision  of  some  great  Affair  is  now  at  Hand. 

MARCH. 

A  man  without  Work,  Money  or  Credit  stands  but  a  poor  Chance. 
Now  pleasant  drying  Days 
Which  settle  the  dirty  miry  Ways. 

APRII,. 

The  famous  Trine  of  Saturn  and  Jupiter  this  month  makes  me  think 
that  PEACE  will  be  concluded. 

MAY. 

A  better  Season  for  Grass  than  last  Year,  and  for  Hemp  and  Flax,  a  bad 
Year  for  Thieves. 

Some  Materials  about  this  Time  are  hatch'd  for  the  Clergy  to  debate 
on. 

JUNE. 

The  News  flies  on  the  Wings  of  Fame. 
A  great  Bustle  about  a  Trifle. 

JUIvY. 

The  Clouds  their  watery  Buckets  fill,  but 
Where  they  will  be  emptied  I  cannot  tell, 
Nor  no  man  else  since  Adam  fell. 

The  Earth  is  parch'd  with  Heat : 
Man's  Veins  are  burnt  with  Choler  ; 
Some  slow  Fevers  first, 
and  Bloody  Fluxes  follow. 

AUGUST. 

Make  Hay  while  you  may 

For  a  mighty  Storm  is  coining  on. 

Wou'd  you  keep  well  this  Month,  beware 
of  cold  raw  Fruits,  and  Evening  Air. 


212  ALMANACK  FOR  1749. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Now  some  are  Loosers,  some  Gainers 
Now  comes  a  lucky  Day  for  Hunters. 

Some  luckless  Undertaking  is  now  afoot  and  many  complaints  among 
Children. 

OCTOBER. 

The  Planets  portend  Things  great  &  remarkable,  lofty  Winds  and  a 
Storm  that  continues. 

The  Heavens  then  smile,  but  for  a  short  while, 
Then  muffle  up  in  Clouds  again. 
He  that  lives  by  Fraud  is  in  Danger  of  dying  a  Knave. 

NOVEMBER. 

Q  (Quartile)  Mars — Mercury. 

Q]  (Quartile)  Saturn — Mars. 

Q'  (Conjunction]  Saturn — Mercury — These  aspects 

Shew  violent  Winds  &  in  Winter  Storms  of  driving  Snow,  mischiefs  by 
the  Indians,  if  no  Peace,  and  among  us  Feuds,  Quarrels,  Bloody  Noses, 
broken  Pates,  if  not  Necks. 

If  there  was  less  debating,  and  more  acting  't  would  be  better  Times. 

DECEMBER. 

I/adies,  take  Heed,  lay  down  your  Fans, 
And,  handle  well  your  Warming  Pans. 

This  cold  uncomfortable  Weather, 
Makes  Jack  and  Jill  lie  close  together. 

The  Lawyer's  Tongues  they  never  freeze, 
If  warm'd  with  honest  Client's  fees. 

Some  feed  on  Beef,  and  some  on  Beans 

Some  scorch  their  Throat,  and  some  their  Shins. 


READER, 

In  the  two  last  Pages  of  my  Almanack  for  the  Year  past  I 
told  you  how  the  Planets  were  accommodated  for  inhabitants  ; 
and  that  they  are  actually  inhabited ;  that  rational  Creatures 
there  sing  the  Praises  of  their  Creator,  who  has  bestowed  his 
Goodness  on  them  in  as  bountiful  &  magnificent  a  manner  as  on 
us,  is  a  Tho't  that  all  judicious  Men  concur  with  :  But  then  such 
Tho'ts  as  these  naturally  arise  in  our  Minds,  How  do  the  People 
there  look?  Have  they  such  Bodies  as  we?  Do  their  Faces, 
Eyes,  &c.  look  like  ours?  To  which  I  would  say,  'tis  highly 


ALMANACK  FOR  1749.  213 

probable;  that  their  Bodies  are  not  very  dissimilar  to  ours :  For 
the  eredl  Posture  of  MAN  (as  lDr.  C.  Mather  observes)  the  Os 
sublime,  how  commodious  for  a  rational  Creature,  who  must  have 
Dominion  over  those  which  are  not  so,  and  must  invent  & 
practice  Things  useful  and  curious :  By  this  Posture  Man  has  the 
use  of  his  Hands,  which  as  Galen  observes,  are  Organa  Sapienti 
Animali  conve nientia ;  and  his  Eyes,  which  as  they  have  the  glo 
rious  Hemisphere  of  the  Heavens  above  him,  so  they  have  the 
Horizon  of  3  Miles  on  a  perfect  Globe  about  them,  when  they 
are  6  Feet  high,  and  by  the  Refraction  of  the  Atmosphere  they 
have  much  more  than  so:  The  Eye,  the  Ear,  the  Tongue,  the 
Hands  the  Feet,  where  could  they  be  more  commodiously  placed 
than  in  Man.  These  planetary  Worlds  (like  our  World)  are 
liable  to  be  delug'd  or  burnt  up  by  the  Approach  of  a  Comet,  not 
exempt  from  the  grand  Catastrophe  of  Nature,  therefore  'tis 
probable  their  inhabitants  are  liable  to  Misfortunes,  to  Wars, 
Afflictions,  Poverty,  and  the  like,  as  well  as  we.  In  our  Bodies 
there  is  one  Conjugation  of  the  Nerves,  which  is  branched  into 
the  Ball,  the  Muscles  and  the  Glands  of  the  Eye  ;  to  the  Ear,  to 
the  Jaws,  the  Gums  and  the  Teeth ;  to  the  Muscles  of  the  Lips, 
to  the  Tonsils,  the  Palate,  the  Tongue,  and  the  Parts  of  the 
Mouth,  to  the  Prcecordia  too ;  and  lastly,  to  the  Muscles  of  the 
Face,  and  very  particularly  those  of  the  Cheeks.  Hence  'tis  that 
a  gustable  Thing,  seen  or  smelt,  excites  the  Appetite  and  affects 
the  Glands,  and  Parts  of  the  Mouth :  A  shameful  Thing,  seen  or 
heard,  affects  the  Cheeks  :  If  the  Fancy  be  pleased,  the  Prcecordia 
affected,  and  the  Muscles  of  the  Mouth  and  the  Face  are  put  into 
the  Motion  of  Laughter.  When  Sadness  is  caused,  it  exerts 
itself  upon  the  Prcscordia,  and  the  Glands  of  the  Eyes  emit  their 
Tears.  Hence  also  the  torvous  look,  produced  by  Anger  and 
Hatred  ;  and  a  gay  Countenance  accompanies  Love,  Hope,  and 
Joy.  To  be  afraid  of  Danger,  to  be  angry  with  an  Enemy,  to 
love  that  which  is  agreable,  these  are  dispositions  of  Mind  that 
must  be  supposed  to  be  found  in  all  rational  Creatures  thro'out 
the  Universe  ;  whose  condition  is  subject  to  change,  and  whose 
Natures  can  suffer  Misfortune.  No  doubt  then  but  the  Planeta- 
rians  have  these  necessary  Passions  of  the  Mind ;  and  since  the 

1  Christ.  Philos.  p.  223. 


214  ALMANACK  FOR  1749. 

Face  for  the  Reasons  above  mentioned  is  the  Index  oi  all  the 
Passions;  the  Criterion  of  a  Friend,  and  the  Certainty  of  an 
Knemy  is  better  discovered  by  the  Make  of  the  Countenance 
than  by  the  Utterance  of  Words.  And  these  Planetarians  can 
never  be  premonished  of  the  evil  Purposes  of  an  Enemy  without 
the  Benefit  of  such  an  Index  as  I  have  above  described  ;  there 
fore  no  doubt  when  they  are  pleased  they  put  on  a  gay  Look  as 
we  do,  and  a  fierce  angry  Countenance  when  they  are  affronted ; 
and,  had  we  Commerce  with  'em,  had  we  the  little  Spaniards 
Ganses, 1  to  carry  us  to  Jupiter,  one  of  the  portly  tall  inhabitants 
of  that  great  World  would  excite  our  Respect ;  but  if  he  was 
angry  he  wou'd  make  an  hundred  &  fifty  of  the  pigmy  inhabit 
ants  of  our  small  World  tremble  at  his  Looks. 


OH  1749. — The  advent  of  white-robed  Peace  is  hailed  in  the 
salutatory  verse,  and  an  extract  from  Alexander  Pope's  "  Temple  of  Fame  " 
stifles  the  rumor  that  Dr.  Ames  would  not  appear  with  his  Almanack  this 
year. 

Virgil  and  Hudibras  open  the  monthly  offerings,  and  from  thence  the 
muse  drops  down  to  more  practical  lines  on  husbandry,  astronomy  and 
meteorology.  Ceres  and  Sirius  receive  their  modicum  of  attention  and 
gradually  Jack  Frost  appears  to  close  the  season. 

For  the  essay,  we  have  some  reflections  on  Man,  and  speculations  as  to 
how  the  inhabitants  of  the  other  Planets  might  appear.  Doctor  Cotton 
Mather,  the  volumnious,  is  called  in  to  testify  and  enlarge  upon  his 
thorough  approval  of  the  very  eligible  location  of  the  Eyes,  Bars,  Tongue, 
etc.,  in  the  human  body,  all  of  which  appears  to  be  quite  gratifying  to  our 
Author,  who  concludes  with  a  desire  for  the  ganzas  of  the  Spanish 
virtuoso,  with  which  he  might  visit  the  various  planets  and  study  the 
comparative  anatomy  of  their  supposed  inhabitants. 

The  jester  pays  his  accostomed  compliments  to  all  as  usual;  clergy, 
laity,  lawyer,  client,  are  touched  up  by  the  jocose  astronomer,  and  good 
advice  and  weather  wisdom  are  judiciously  mingled,  to  make  a  most 
pleasant  and  digestible  melange. 

Under  the  month  of  June,  in  the  verse  at  the  head,  is  an  illusion  to  the 
condition  of  the  circulating  medium,  referred  to  in  the  historical  chapter 
in  the  introduction  to  this  work. 

1  A  kind  of  wild  goose,  by  a  flock  of  which  a  virtuoso  was  fabled  to  be 
carried  to  the  lunar  world. —  Webster's  Dictionary.  Johnson.  Hudibras. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1750.  215 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR    1750, 


By  Nathanael  Ames. 


BOSTON,  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 


Printed  by  J.  DRAPER,  for  the  BOOKSELLERS. 
Price  is.  6  Single  &  12s.  per  Dozen. 


To  Systems  numberless,  remote  and  far, 

Our  Sun  is  seen  but  as  a  fixed  Star : 

Their  Suns  to  us  but  lucid  Points  appear, 

Whose  full-orbed  Glories  blaze  to  World's  more  near. 

Systems  of  Worlds  are  rang'd  from  Pole  to  Pole : 

GOD  made  and  shed  his  Glory  on  the  whole. 

These  rolling  Worlds  obey  his  powerful  nod. 

How  grand  the  Universe !     How  worthy  of  the  GOD. 


On  a  Judgment  of  Court  obtain'd  after  a  long  Law -Suit. 
DEUS,  nobis  haec  Otia,  fecit. 

Four  Times  the  Sun  has  in  cold  Pisces  been, 

The  rising  Pleiads  have  four  Autumns  seen, 

Since  I  have  stood  th'  opposing  Lawyer's  Tongue 

Who  puzzl'd  Right,  and  Justify'd  the  Wrong, 

An  honest  Cause  by  dint  of  Law,  niaintain'd, 

And  Virgil  like  the  Mantuan  Lands  have  gain'd  : 

When  Strife  belch'd  forth  her  foul  discordant  Sound, 

The  Voice  of  Orphczus  charming  Lyre  was  drown 'd, 

The  muses  from  their  usual  Haunts  retir'd, 

And  left  their  barren  Votary  uninspir'd  : 

Ye  Goddesses  of  Verse,  Appolld's  Quire, 

The  Prodigal  return'd  :  once  more  inspire, 

Ye  sweet  Infusers  of  diviner  Strains, 

With  rich  Ideas  croud  his  minting  Brains, 

Cease  Strife  :  all  but  the  Nightingale  be  mute, 

Whilst  I  contend  with  her  upon  the  Lute. 


2l6  ALMANACK    FOR    1750. 

JANUARY. 

From  yonder  Lakes  the  Breath  of  Winter  blows : 
Nature  lies  bleach'd  and  bury'd  up  in  Snows : 
Vast  Stores  of  Nitre  from  the  frigid  Zone, 
Wedge  up  the  rolling  Floods  as  firm  as  Stone. 

FEBRUARY. 

Sot's  Steeds  at  last  have  reach'd  the  scaly  Star, 
That  ends  the  crooked  Circle  of  the  Year : 
To  Aries  next  they  mount  that  heavenly  Sign, 
Whence  Phcebns  went  when  first  lie  measur'd  TIME. 

MARCH. 

The  fleecy  Ram  conjoins  th'  approaching  Sun 
While  melting  Snows  in  purling  Riv'lets  run, 
And  waking  Philomel  begins  to  sing, 
Her  warbling  Sonnets  to  the  wanton  Spring. 

APRIL. 

The  Clouds  that  treasur'd  up  the  Winter  Rain, 
Remit  to  Barth  their  humid  Store  again, 
Their  melting  Bosom's  drop  in  balmy  Showers 
The  very  Quintessence  of  vernal  Flowers. 


The  Bye  delighted  with  the  blooming  Trees, 
The  Nostrils  feasted  with  each  o'drous  Breeze : 
The  feather'd  Tribe,  that  wanton  on  the  Wing, 
Entrance  the  list'ning  Bar,  the  whilst  they  sing. 

JUNK. 

Sol  joins  the  Crad,  whose  Claws  with  fervour  fry 
The  verdent  Herb,  the  Barth  inflam'd  and  dry, 
As  with  a  Fever  longs  for  cooling  Rain 
Drinks  heartily,  and  longs  to  drink  again. 

JULY. 

Through  the  boreal  Crab  Soi,  took  his  Way, 
And  with  the  fiery  Lyon  makes  a  stay ; 
There  with  the  furious  Dog-Star  he  doth  meet, 
Which  adds  a  burning  Fervour  to  his  heat. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1750.  217 


AUGUST. 


The  Virgin  lends  her  Bosom  to  aswage 

And  pacify  Sol's  burning  furious  Rage. 

They  embrace,  and  down  to  Thetis'  Bed  descend : 

Cool  nights  arise,  and  all  the  World  befriend. 


SEPTEMBER. 


The  terrifying  Heat  of  Sol  now  fails, 
Whilst  he  delib'rates  with  his  heav'nly  Scales 
His  more  impartial  Justice  to  display, 
Weighs  out  in  equal  Parts  the  Night  and  Day. 


OCTOBER. 


The  SUN  withdraws,  and  aged  grows  the  Year, 
No  wing'd  musicians  charm  th'  attentive  Ear : 
Approaching  Winter  now  begins  his  Threats, 
And  Flora  dies  with  morning  frosty  Sweats. 


NOVEMBER. 

We  cannot  justly  on  bright  Venus  lay 
Those  am'rous  Tho'ts  by  which  we're  led  astray 
She  only  prompts  to  such  propentions,  and 
Her  Syren  charms  our  Prudence  may  withstand. 

Parker. 

DECEMBER. 

Soi,  in  the  Winter  Solstice  doth  array 
(Instead  of  Green)  the  Earth  in  Silver  grey, 
And  all  the  Beauty  of  the  wrinkled  Fields 
To  the  keen  Blast  of  cruel  Boreas  yields. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

A  Silver  Currency  as  unlikely  as  a  Crown  in  a  Poet's  Pocket. 

Some  Liberty,  but  Oh  !  Where's  Property  ? 

Now  some  Lady  is  honour'd. 

Strange  Disagreements  even  among  old  Friends. 


218  ALMANACK  FOR  1750. 


FEBRUARY. 

Now  freezing  cold 

Which  makes  old  Maids  to  fret  and  scold. 

That  sort  of  Weather  that  now  happens  will  continue  a  long  while. 
I  leave  the  good  weather  to  come  between  and  now  predict  another 
storm  and  a  smart  one  too. 

MARCH. 

Expiring  Winter  shakes  his  threat'ning  Rod. 

Winds  from  the  frozen  Lake 

Makes  frighten'd  Men,  &  starving  Cattle  quake. 

Dirty  travelling.     Boots  very  convenient. 

cP   "b   0)  ^-n  ill-portending  Omen 

To  mushroom  Gentlemen. 


APRIL. 

An  honest  Mind,  with  Diligence  and  Frugality  may  be  Easy,  in  hard 
Times. 

Nature  presents  the  long*d  for  Spring  to  birth. 
French  Fashions  still  in  vogue. 
Joan's  back,  must  have  a  Sack. 


MAY. 

The  Lady's  Dress,  tho'  fine  and  gay 
don't  come  up  to  charming  May. 

Many  Projections  to  little  or  no  Purpose,  but  tending  to  Discord. 

JUNE. 

A  disturbed  air,  at  length  rain, 

Which  makes  some  Country-men  and  Frolickers  Complain. 

Pleasant  Evenings  for  Ladies. 


JULY. 

Our  Province  defended  by  some  of  its  Friends, 
and  perhaps  Old  Tenor  comes  to  an  end. 

A  Scheme  just  started  for  the  Benefit  of  a  great  Number. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1750.  2 19 


AUGUST. 

The  Stars  about  this  Time  portend  something  unusual. 
A  love  to  Self,  and  worldly  Pelf  is  still  prevailing. 
*  High  Winds  that  blow  the  Trees  o'erthrow. 

SEPTEMBER. 
An  unexpected  Turn  of  Times. 

This  Year  there's  rais'd  both  Wheat  and  Flax 
At  or  near  New-Halifax. 

OCTOBER. 
Butter  and  Cheese,  as  much  as  you  please. 

If  no  Money  conies  in  we  know  what  to  trust  to 
And  what  we  can't  well  do,  we  must  do. 

NOVEMBER. 

The  Plot  of  November 
We  ever  remember. 

The  Sun  now  and  then  casts  a  Smile  on  his  old  Friend  the  North,  but 
Night  soon  checks  him  for't. 

DECEMBER. 

I  should  predict  good  Weather  this  Week,  but  there's  so  many  Courts, 
the  Lawyers  may  raise  a  Storm,  but  may  be  soon  over. 
The  Year  ends  with  falling  Weather.     Vale. 


AMES  1750. 

JUNE  the  1 8th  Day  1749,  that  remarkable  hot  Day,  the  Heli- 
ocentrick  Place  of  Mars  in  his  Orbit  is  found  to  be  9  Signs,  6 
Deg.  30  M.  The  Earth's  Hel.  Orbit  Place  9  S.  7  D.  30  M.  The 
Place  of  the  Moon  in  her  Orbit  at  our  Noon  8  S.  29  D.  i  M. 
The  Earth's  Aphelion  9  S.  6  D.  57  M.  The  Distance  of  the 
Aphelion  of  Mars  from  the  vernal  Equinox  5  S.  o  D.  48  M. 
the  Moon's  Perigeon  n  S.  o  D.  21  M.  But  that  my  Reader  may 


220 


ALMANACK    FOR    I75O. 


see  with  his  Eyes  the  remarkable  Situation  of  our  Earth,  and 
her  Attendant  Moon,  and  the  Planet  Mars  on  that  Day,  I  shall 
here  insert  the  following 

DIAGRAM. 


^lanaiion  of  the  foregoing  DIAGRAM. 

Let  the  Curve  A  ::  C.  D  represent  the  Ellipsis  in  which  the 
center  of  the  Earth  revolves  about  the  Sun,  CD  that  Focus  in  the 
Ellipsis  where  the  Sun  is  placed,  the  Line  ^:  D  the  greater 
Axis  of  the  Earth's  Orbit,  the  other  Line  A.  C.  the  lesser  Axis. 
The  other  Curve  E  F  G  H.  represents  the  Ellipsis  in  which 
Mars  in  like  Manner  revolves  about  the  Sun.  F.  H.  the  greater 
Axis  of  his  Orbit,  (which  Line  you  see  crosses  the  greater  Axis 
of  the  Earth's  Orbit  at  the  Center  of  the  Sun)  E  G.  the  lesser 


ALMANACK  FOR  1750.  221 

Axis.  The  Aphelion  of  the  Earth  and  Heliocentrick  Place  are 
near  the  same  Point,  viz  :  about  V3  6,  where  the  Character  of 
the  Earth  is  placed  thus  Q  :  an  Eye  at  the  Sun  would  behold 
the  Earth,  the  Moon  and  Mars  all  in  Conjunction  :  Now  since 
the  Sun  is  at  3  the  Earth  at  Q,  and  Mars  at  cT  ;  it  is  evident 
that  Mars  must  be  in  the  middle  of  his  Regress,  and  appears  to 
us  on  Earth  to  be  in  cP  to  the  Sun ;  but  if  Mars  had  been  at 
@,  he  would  have  been  in  the  middle  of  his  Progress,  and  would 
have  appeared  to  an  Inhabitant  of  the  Earth  to  be  in  cf  with 
the  Sun,  the  Moon  likewise  at  3,  is  between  Mars  and  the 
Earth.  It  appears  by  this  Scheme  that  on  the  Account  of  Mars's 
being  in  Opposition  to  the  Sun  at  cf ,  he  is  an  entire  Diameter  of 
the  Orbis  Magnus  nearer  the  Earth  at  that  Time  than  if  he  had 
been  in  cf  with  the  Sun  at  69 ;  not  only  so,  but  by  Reason  the 
Aphelion  of  these  Planets  fall  in  such  parts  of  their  Orbits  as 
to  make  the  nearest  approach  of  their  Orbits  at  those  Points 
where  Mars  and  the  Earth  happened  to  be  on  that  Day,  On 
this  account  I  say,  Mars  never  was  nearer  the  Earth,  nor 
can  he  possibly  be  nearer  the  Earth  than  he  was  the  i8th 
of  June  last,  and  the  Moon  at  that  point  of  Time  Step'd  (?)  in 
between  them ;  and  as  Astrologers  phrase  it,  handed  down  the 
Influence  of  that  burning  Planet  to  the  Earth.  The  famous 
Kepler  hath  made  it  evident,  that  the  Planet's  Course  about  the 
Sun  is  not  Circular  but  Elliptical,  and  the  Sun  does  not  possess 
the  Center  of  the  Ellipsis  but  one  of  the  Foci :  and  the  Planets 
as  they  are  carried  along  their  Orbits  by  the  Rays  drawn  from 
them  to  the  Sun,  describe  Areas  exactly  proportional  to  the 
Time  they  spend  in  their  Revolution  :  This  Sir  Isaac  Newton  has 
demonstrated  from  the  Laws  of  Nature. 


The  subjoined  poem  was  found  among  the  papers  of  Dr.  Ames  written 
on  the  same  sheet  which  contained  the  copy  for  the  above  calculations, 
and  was  doubtless  crowded  out  this  year : 

Should  Christ  lay  by  his  Father's  glitt'ring  Rays, 
Which  shine  eternal  with  a  Glorious  Blaze, 
And  in  the  Forme  of  a  poore  Humble  Man, 
Once  more  vouchsafe  upon  this  World  to  stand, 
Would  Man  fall  down  obsequious  and  Adore  ? 
Or  would  he  treat  him  as  he  did  before  ? 


222  ALMANACK    FOR    1750. 

Would  he  the  eternal  Son  of  God  abuse 

And  shed  his  Blood  as  did  the  cruel  Jews  ? 

Say,  Concience !  lo,  I  heare  ye  say  not  I, 

But  then  I  fain  would  ask  the  Reason  why. 

Are  you  more  favour'd  by  the  Great  Creator 

To  have  a  nobler  and  more  generous  Nature  ? 

Can  you  Discern  betwixt  what's  Good  and  Bad 

With  just  ye  same  advantages  they  had? 

Have  you  no  favourite  Passions  of  your  own 

That  set  and  terrorize  on  Reason's  Throne  ? 

Can  you  be  blamed  and  not  the  least  resent 

Or  may  you  let  a  little  fury  vent  ? 

This  is  the  Rule,  the  only  Rule  to  know 

Wheather  you  are  such  Miscreants  or  no. 

If  you  thro'  Pride  or  Hatred  do  (?)  wrong 

The  meanest  Saint  yt  does  to  Him  belong 

Had  you  been  present  at  yt  tragick  Scene 

You  there  a  bloody  actor  would  have  been 

Would  done  assault  God's  favourite  Son  most  high 

If  yt  his  Awfull  Deity  stood  by 

Pouring  his  Glories  on  your  Mortal  Eye. 


on  1750. — The  works  of  the  Grand  Architect  are  extolled 
this  year  in  the  person  of  the  daily  Sun,— the  Universe,  and  the  rolling 
World, — lines  to  which  appear  on  the  title  page.  Next  succeeding  this 
offering — Laus  Deo—we  are  advised  that  the  Doctor  has  at  last  won  his 
case  in  court,  and  in  the  fulness  of  his  heart  he  properly  exclaims  "  Deus 
nobis,  haec  otia  fecit ;"  takes  down  from  the  shelf  his  lyre,  attunes  his 
soul  to  the  joyful  theme,  allowing  his  inner  self  to  gush  forth  to  the  Seven 
Stars  in  astronomical  verse,  to  testify  his  most  satisfactory  satisfaction  at 
the  great  victory. 

At  the  head  of  each  monthly  page  the  jubilating  astronomer  poetically 
toasts  each  zodiacal  sign  in  connection  with  Phoebus  Philomel  &  Co,  A 
Mr.  Parker  contributes  a  very  tasteful  verse  for  November. 

The  essay  is  also  of  an  astronomical  character  entirely,  and  displays 
much  knowledge  of  the  subject,  and  in  a  very  acceptable  manner. 

Hilaritas  pervades  the  weather  column.  Hard  times  appear  to  pervade 
the  Colony— the  Currency  question  is  to  the  front,  and  "  Old  Tenor  "  (that 
very  peculiar  emission  of  the  Colonial  treasury)  appears  to  be  a  nuisance. 
Fashions,  females  and  frolickers,  are  noticed,  with  Guy  Fawkes  again  a 
prominent  feature  in  November. 

NOTE. — In  the  year  1750  Roger  Sherman  of  Connecticut,  one  of  the 
Signers  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  began  the  publication  of  an 


ALMANACK  FOR  1750.  223 

Almanack,  which  he  continued  several  years,  patterning  the  same  largely 
after  Dr.  Ames.     His  opening  address  is  as  follows : 

To  the  READER. 

I  have  for  several  Years  past  for  my  own  Amusement,  spent  some  of  my 
leisure  Hours  in  the  Study  of  the  Mathematicks,  not  with  any  intent  to 
appear  in  publick  ;  But  at  the  Desire  of  many  of  my  Friends  and  Acquaint 
ance,  I  have  been  induced  to  calculate  and  publish  the  following  ALMANACK 
for  the  Year  1750.  I  have  put  in  Every  Thing  that  I  thought  would  be 
useful,  that  could  be  contained  in  such  contracted  Limits  :  I  have  taken 
much  Care  to  perform  the  Calculations  truly,  not  having  the  help  of  any 
Ephemeris :  And  I  would  desire  the  Reader  not  to  condemn  it,  if  it  should 
in  some  things  differ  from  other  Authors,  until  Observations  have  deter 
mined  which  is  in  the  wrong.  I  need  say  nothing  by  way  of  Explanation 
of  the  following  Pages,  they  being  placed  in  the  same  Order  that  has  been 
for  many  Years  practised  by  the  ingenious  and  celebrated  DR.  AMES,  with 
which  you  are  well  acquainted. 1  If  this  shall  find  Acceptance  perhaps  it 
may  encourage  me  to  serve  my  Country  this  Way  for  Time  to  come. 

R.  SHERMAN. 

New  Mi  If  or  d,  August  /,  1749. 

The  monthly  poetic  captions  are  on  the  Creation,  and  Roger  does  up 
the  subject  much  the  same  as  the  authors  of  Oratorios,  and  others  who 
have  written  on  the  theme. 

Cimmerian  darkness,  wet  weather,  wild  disorder ;  then,  glorious 
Canopy,  race  between  Night  and  Day,  with  Night  a  good  second  in  the 
contest.  Then  Soiv  makes  his  entrance,  with  the  customary  allusions  by 
the  author  to  nuptial  garments,  warm  times,  purling  streams,  green  grass 
and  other  concomitants  of  the  simile.  Then  some  casual  remarks  concern 
ing  Phcebiis  and  Tellus ;  Queen  of  Night  with  planetary  Chorus  ;  after 
which  enter  "  the  God-like  creature  Man,"  with  robe  of  Innocence,  manly 
Virtues,  serene  Locks,  divine  Temper :  then  the  Rib  performance  followed 
by  the  much  abused  Eve,  who  with  Adam  sits  about  luxuriously  on  the 
green  sward,  until  their  curiosity  is  aroused  by  the  neighborly  Snake — in 
the  historical  manner,  then  the  denouement,  eviction,  and  December  is 
reached. 

Sherman  in  common  with  many  others,  corresponded  with  Dr.  Ames 
on  the  subject  of  Eclipses,  and  the  motions  of  the  Planets,  Calculations, 
etc.  The  allusions  above,  and  the  following  letter  will  be  evidence  of  the 
confidence  and  estimation  which  the  Doctor  enjoyed  among  his  fellow 
citizens  and  co-laborers. 

Italics  by  Editor. 


224 


ALMANACK    FOR    1750. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1751.  225 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1751 


By  Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON  in  NEW  ENGLAND: 

Printed  by  J.  DRAPER,  for  the  BOOKSELLERS. 
Price  Twelve  Shillings  old  Tenor  per  Dozen,  i8d.  O.  T.  Single. 


Perceiv'st  them  not  the  Process  of  the  Year, 
How  the  four  Seasons  in  four  Forms  appear : 
Spring  first,  like  Infancy,  shoots  out  her  Head, 
With  milky  Juice  requiring  to  be  fed  ; 
Proceeding  onward  whence  the  Year  began, 
The  Summer  grows  adult,  and  ripens  into  Man : 
Atitumn  succeeds  a  sober  tepid  Age, 
Not  froze  with  Fear,  nor  boiling  into  Rage  : 
Last  Winter  sweeps  along  with  tardy  Pace, 
Sour  is  his  Front,  and  furrow'd  is  his  Face. 


COURTEOUS  RKADKR, 

THE  Verses  at  the  Head  of  each  Monthly  Page  were  written 
at  my  Desire,  and  presented  to  me  by  a  young  Gentleman,  then 
at  the  Age  of  twelve  Years. — 

—The  most  remarkable  Advice  this  Year  from  the  Stars  is 
the  famous  Oppositions  of  the  superior  Planets  Saturn  and 
Jupiter,  which  happens  three  Times  this  Year,  the  like  cannot 
happen  oftener  than  once  in  twenty  Years  :  These  Aspects  por 
tend  Discord  and  Difference  amongst  Persons  of  the  highest 
Rank  and  Quality ;  and  threatens  the  European  Nations  with  a 
Quarrel :  But  what  may  affedl  North  America  most  is,  it  is  quite 


226  ALMANACK    FOR    1751. 

probable  that  there  will  be  an  open  Rupture  between  the  Gov- 
ernours  of  New-England  and  the  Princes  of  Terra  Canadensis  .—* 
I  don't  make  such  Predictions,  but  only  speak  what  the  Spirit 
and  Genius  of  ancient  Astrology  dictates  on  these  Occasions : 
I  can  bring  no  modern  Author  to  support  this  Opinion,  because 
those  Men  that  write  fashionably  at  this  Day  condemn  the  whole 
Art,  and  all  who  pretend  to  it :  But  be  it  remembred  that  'tis 
but  a  few  Men  that  govern  in  the  Kingdom  of  Learning  as  well 
as  in  that  of  Policy,  the  Multitude,  like  empty  Pitchers,  are 
lugg'd  by  the  Bars  any  Way  that  Custom  leads :  Whilst  Astrology 
was  caress'd  by  Princes  and  great  Philosophers,  and  the  Pro 
fessors  of  it  honoured  and  esteemed  by  great  Men,  the  Tongues 
and  Pens  of  all  the  fashionable  Wits  in  the  World  were  employed 
to  defend  the  Credit  of  the  Art ;  but  now  the  Table  is  turn'd, 
they  speak  and  write  against  it,  the  Multitude  follow : — Truth 
generally  lies  in  a  Medium  between  the  Extremes  :  Whilst  these 
prevailing  Opinions  roll  round  in  an  eternal  Circle  from  one 
Extream  to  another;  the  Nodes  in  this  Circle  that  cross  the 
Zodiack  of  Truth,  are  the  only  Points  for  the  unprejudiced,  that 
is,  the  only  wise  amongst  Men  to  calculate  by,  and  tell  at  any 
Time  how  far  Truth  is  eclipsed  by  the  Interposition  of  Error : 
The  Path  of  Truth  is  a  streight  Line  ;  but  Men  will  vary  from 
that  Line  in  more  Degrees  than  the  Inclination  of  the  Moon's 
Orbit  varies  from  the  Ecliptick  :  We  can  calculate  the  Wandrings 
of  that  fickle  Planet ;  but  the  Errors  of  Mankind,  or  even  his 
own  who  can  understand  ? 


JANUARY. 

If  fraught  with  Snow  the  gath'ring  Clouds  impend, 

Hov'ring  in  Air  the  fleecy  Flakes  descend 

Smooth  as  th'  unruffled  Surface  of  the  Sea : 

But  if  the  furious  Winds  with  Hail  agree, 

The  furious  Winds  the  batter'd  Casements  crack, 

I/evel  the  hoary  Gro\re,  the  tot'ring  Buildings  rack. 

FEBRUARY. 

Now  hoary  Winter  shivers  o'er  the  Plains, 

And  binds  the  frozen  Floods  in  adamantine  Chains  ; 


ALMANACK  FOR  1751.  227 

Th'  advancing  Sun  by  his  prolific  Ray 

Warms  the  cold  Air,  and  drives  the  Damps  away ; 

A  gen'ral  Thaw  ensues,  the  Waters  rore, 

Break  their  cold  Bands,  and  lash  the  sounding  Shore. 

MARCH. 

The  trembling  Sailor  views  with  anxious  Eyes 
The  gloomy  Storm  slow-sailing  up  the  Skies, 
Hoarse  Whirlwinds  thunder  o'er  the  distant  Deep, 
And  the  white  foaming  Waves  majestick  sweep, 
Up  to  the  Skies  the  shat'red  Ship  is  tost, 
Then  down  the  bottomless  Abyss  is  lost. 

APRIL. 

Ill  Clouds  array'd  now  Heav'n  indulgent  low'rs, 

The  fat'ned  Fields  confess  the  frequent  Show'rs, 

'Till  at  the  Close  of  the  declining  Day, 

The  setting  Sun  directs  his  level  Ray, 

While  flying  Iris  draws  the  painted  Bow, 

And  in  the  dropping  Cloud  the  blended  Colours  glow. 

MAY. 

The  fragrant  Fields  are  cloth'd  in  rich  Array, 
The  Groves  rejoice,  and  all  the  World  is  gay, 
While  tuneful  Birds  their  various  Anthems  sing, 
And  with  their  Notes  the  vocal  Forests  ring ; 
The  painted  Blossoms  charm  th'  admiring  Byes, 
And  send  their  grateful  Odours  to  the  Skies. 

JUNE. 

The  murm'ring  Thunder  at  a  Distance  rolls, 
And  vivid  Lightnings  burn  about  the  Poles. 
O'er  the  high  Arch  the  flaming  Torrents  play, 
And  tarn  the  Darkness  to  the  Blaze  of  Day. 
Heav'n's  everlasting  Pillars  gronn  aloud, 
And  the  hoarse  Thunder  rattles  thro'  the  Cloud. 

JUI/V. 

The  Flocks,  retiring  from  the  burning  Heat, 
Seek  the  cool  Covert  of  a  green  Retreat, 
The  silver  Stream  invites  the  thirsty  Swain, 
While  sultry  Syrius  fires  the  glowing  Plain  ; 
The  parcht  Earth  cracks,  the  Oxen  low  for  Food, 
And  Phcebiis  rages  o'er  the  sapless  Wood. 


228  ALMANACK  FOR  1751, 


AUGUST. 

Bear  me  to  some  cool  Arbour's  pleasing  Shade, 

By  curling  Vines  and  lofty  Poplars  made, 

Or,  in  the  Covert  of  some  lonely  Grove, 

Fan'd  by  refreshing  Zephyr's  may  I  rove, 

Where  some  still  Stream  it's  silver  Current  pours 

Thro'  mossy  Banks  adorn'd  with  various  Flow'rs. 

SEPTEMBER. 

While  Ceres  pours  the  Joys  of  Plenty  round, 
The  bearded  Harvest  whitens  o'er  the  Ground, 
The  tumid  Grape  bears  down  the  slender  Vine, 
And  ev'ry  thick'ning  Cluster  swells  with  Wine, 
With  various  Fruits  the  loaded  Orchards  blush, 
And  the  gay  Berry  blazes  on  the  Bush. 

OCTOBER. 

Sulphureous  Flames  th'  unwary  Bees  assail, 
And  spite  of  all  their  little  Arts  prevail ; 
Fam'd  Architects  all  perish  in  the  Dome, 
Who  rear'd  by  Rules  exact  the  curious  Comb  ; 
Statesmen  and  Gen'rals  undistinguish'd  lie, 
And  Monarchs  and  their  Slaves  promiscuous  die. 

NOVEMBER. 

The  silver  Current  murmur'd  thro'  the  Grove, 
Sacred  to  Flora  and  the  Queen  of  Love  ; 
But  am'rous  Hymen  seiz'd  the  blooming  Maid, 
The  Flow'rs  all  dropt,  the  Verdure  all  decay'd. 
The  silver  Current  stiffened  as  it  roll'd, 
And  all  the  Forest  shiver'd  with  the  Cold. 

DECEMBER. 

Distant  Apollo  with  his  slanting  Ray 

Makes  a  faint  Effort  to  produce  the  Day, 

To  the  short  Days  the  long  long  Nights  succeed ; 

While  twinkling  Stars  the  chrystal  Vault  o'erspread ; 

And  the  fair  Moon  rules  o'er  the  dusky  Night, 

The  hoary  Vale  reflects  the  silver  Light. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1751.  229 

£fetilt£fc4lfctife^^ 

Advertisement. 


are  to  signify  to  all  Persons  that  travel 
the  great  Post-  Road  South-  West  from  Boston, 
That  I  keep  a  House  of  Publick  Entertainment 
Eleven  Miles  from  Boston,  at  the  Sign  of  the  SUN. 
If  they  want  Refreshment,  and  see  Cause  to  be  my 
Guests,  they  shall  be  well  entertained  at  a  reasonable 
Rate, 

N.  Ames. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

FEBRUARY. 

But  little  Money,  Work  or  Credit  makes  difficult  Times. 
Contention  often  ends  in  Confusion  and  much  Mischief. 

MARCH. 

Strange  Stories  told  but  how  few  turn  out  true. 

APRIL. 
Crazy  Bodies  in  their  Noddies  feel  a  storm  approaching. 

MAY. 

Still  many  Schemes  afoot  but  to  little  or  no  effect. 

There  is  a  Generation  of  men  who  are  valiant  to  fight  with  a  Man 
behind  his  Back.     Experientia  docet. 

JUNE. 

Whilst  many  try  to  mend. 
The  People  discommend. 

Let  those  in  our  Frontiers  take  care  this  Month  for  the  Tribe  of  Dan 
under  the  influence  of  Saturn  will  be  much  inclin'd  to  do  mischief. 

How  many  are  lull'd  asleep 

While  they  a  good  look-out  should  keep. 


230  ALMANACK    FOR    1751. 

AUGUST. 

For  want  of  Resolution  great  Promises  are  broken. 
Old  Complaints  yet  continue. 

SEPTEMBKR. 

Many  increase  their  Troubles  by  indulging  their  selfish  Principles  and 
vicious  Habits. 

Better  Men  better  Times. 

OCTOBER. 

Now  be  saving  and  you  need  not  fear  starving. 
Many  Reports  about  Things  that  never  come  to  pass. 

NOVEMBER. 
More  bad  News  than  good. 

DECEMBER. 

You'd  better  stir  abroad  than  sit  still  and  freeze. 
Now  at  the  Exit  of  this  Year. 
The  heavy  Clouds  let  drop  a  Tear. 


AMES,  1751. 


The  Earth,  self-ballanced  on  her  Center  hangs,  and  by  her 
obsequious  Motion  upon  her  Axis  fetches  the  agreeable  Vicissi 
tude  of  Day  and  Night  from  that  stupendious  Globe  of  Light 
and  Heat,  the  SUN.  When  Night  erects  his  shadowy  Cone  in 
our  Hemisphere,  as  the  Splendor  of  Day  diminishes,  and  the 
Tide  of  Light  begins  to  ebb  from  our  wearied  Eyes,  what  an 
occular  Demonstration  of  the  Immensity  of  the  Creators  works 
presents  itself  to  our  Sight  by  the  innumerable  Lamps  of  Heaven 
that  shine  gloriously  in  the  Vaux-Hall  of  the  Universe.  Night 
gives  us  a  view  of  those  associate  Worlds  that  belong  to  the 
same  System  with  this  Earth,  and  by  the  help  of  Glasses  we 
discover  their  attendant  Moons  that  are  invisible  to  the  naked 
Eye :  Night  also  calls  forth  that  numberless  Host  of  fixed  Stars 
that  were  hid  in  Light  all  the  Day  long :  their  want  of  Parallax 
demonstrate  their  immense  Distance  and  that  their  Light  is 


ALMANACK  FOR  1751.  231 

innate  and  not  borrowed.  The  Galaxy  in  the  Evenings  in 
February  and  August  presents  itself  to  full  View:  and  that 
white  broad  Path  that  encompasses  the  whole  Heavens,  by  Tel 
escopes  has  been  discovered  to  consist  of  an  innumerable  cluster 
of  fixed  Stars  different  in  Situation  and  Magnitude,  whose  con 
fused  Light  we  behold :  '  Tis  supposed  that  these  Stars  are  Suus 
to  other  systems  as  far  distant  from  each  other  as  we  are 
from  them,  that  to  nine  Parts  in  ten  of  the  Space  between  us 
and  the  fixed  Stars,  our  Sun  appears  as  a  Star  does  to  us  in  a 
clear  Night:  doubtless  these  Suns  appear  as  large  in  their 
respective  Systems  as  our  Sun  does  in  this,  and  are  the  noble 
Apparatus's  of  Light  and  Heat  to  each  Planet  that  revolves 
about  them  :  and  that  each  of  these  Planets  are  impregnate  with 
Gravity,  and  stock' d  writh  rational  Inhabitants  who  are  furnished 
with  everything  necessary  for  their  Conservation.  How  does 
such  a  Thought  enlarge  and  stretch  our  Ideas  of  the  Works  of 
GOD  ?  What  but  infinite  Wisdom  could  contrive  and  what  but 
Omnipotency  make  so  grand  a  Fabrick  as  the  Universe !  Here's 
Employment  for  the  Angels  !  Here's  Space  sufficient  to  stretch 
their  Wings  on  Errands  of  Kindness  from  an  indulgent  Creator 
to  the  Individuals  amongst  his  creatures. 


OH  I75X. — The  Seasons  this  year  are  the  topic  for  considera 
tion  in  the  opening  chorus  on  first  page,  and  the  address  to  the  reader 
rehearses  the  stellar  aspects  and  their  probable  effects  upon  European 
nations  and  the  Colonies  of  North  America  as  viewed  in  astrological 
circles.  The  former  spirit  and  genius  of  the  art  is  related  and  its  decay 
noted,  together  with  the  governing  reasons  therefor. 

The  monthly  verses  are  announced  "  to  have  been  written  at  the  desire 
of  Dr.  Ames,  and  presented  to  him  by  a  young  gentleman  then  at  the  age 
of  twelve  years,"  the  effort  being  quite  creditable  to  the  youthful  Apollo, 
and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  we  have  not  his  name. 

Boys  were  certainly  quite  precocious  in  the  early  days,  and  none  need 
wonder  at  the  Doctor  compiling  an  Almanack  in  his  i6th  year,  when  a 
genius  like  the  poet  of  this  year's  production  was  developed  at  an  earlier 
age  twenty-five  years  later.  New  England  certainly  has  much  to  be  proud 
of  both  in  ancient  and  modern  scholars  and  scientists. 

The  Doctor  this  year  makes  a  new  business  departure,  and  boldly 
announces  himself  as  a  tavern-keeper  "  Eleven  Miles  from  Boston,  at  the 


232  ALMANACK    FOR 

Sign  of  the  Sun,"  through  an  advertising  medium  of  unquestioned  large 
circulation. 

The  essay  is  a  lecture  on  the  beauties  of  the  night,  describing  the  won 
ders  to  be  seen  in  the  heavens,  through  the  medium  of  the  telescope 
which  lays  bare  to  our  view  the  myriads  of  stars  which  compose  the 
"  milky  way."  After  an  elaboration  of  his  ideas  on  this  vast  subject,  the 
Doctor  concludes,  congratulating  the  Angels  that  there  is  yet  space 
enough  unoccupied  for  them  to  stretch  their  wings  on  errands  of  love  and 
kindness. 

The  astronomer  and  inn-keeper  is  briefly  humorous  this  year,  but  he 
has  yet  the  inclination  to  give  a  parting  salute  to  his  assailant  at  law> 
and  still  warn  the  outlying  settlements  against  the  probable  incursions  of 
the  Indians.  "  Hard  Times  "  still  exist,  Old  Tenor  still  the  ruling  spirit, 
and  is  this  year  noted  in  the  price  line  of  the  Almanack  to  qualify  the 
cost. 


I  append  the  following  marginal  notes  found  in  this  Almanack  : 

January  yth  was  a  Tedious  Storm  of  Snow  &  an  Excessive  high  wind. 

It  was  the  first  snow  we  had  deep  enough  to  Sled  on. 
February  2oth.     Blue  Bird  sang. 
25th.     A  Lark  sang. 
26th.     Frogs  Peep'd. 
27th.     Robins  sang. 
March  nth.     Aaron  Martin  was  Drowned  found  March  ye  26th  in  Colo 

Marcy's  Mill  Pond. 
2 1 st.      Was  a  Publick  Fast. 
April     2oth.     Breaks  came  up. 

29th.     Poplars  leav'd. 
May         6th.     Mare  Folded. 

Octo.     2oth-2yth  hard  Thunder  and  Lightening. 
November  was  a  very  warm  Pleasant  month. 
December  was  in  generrall  a  cold  Tite  month. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1752.  233 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1752. 


By  Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON,  in  NEW  ENGLAND. 


Printed  by  JOHN  DRAPER,  for  the  Booksellers. 
Price  12  s.  Old  Tenor,  per  Dozen,  and  18  d.  single. 


Of  all  the  Plagues  by  which  Mankind  are  curst 

A  Throat  that's  never  satisfy'd's  the  worst. 

— "  What  Almanack-Maker  preach  :   Thou  view  the  Pole, 

"We  will  indulge  the  Pleasures  of  the  Bowl." — 

Go  on  vain  Fool,  if  L,ust  thy  Will  can  bribe 

To  scorn  the  Rules  that  Reason  does  prescribe ; 

All  Nature's  Stores  cannot  thy  Thirst  aswage, 

Thou  Prodigal  of  lyife  !  thou'st  inortgag'd  thy  old  Age, 

Thy  Health  will  fail,  thy  Joys  will  end  in  Sorrow, 

To  live  a  Beast  To-Day,  thou'lt  die  a  Fool  To-Morrow. 


Courteous  Reader, 

With  the  Year  1740  all  the  Ephemerides  of  the  Planets  Places 
then  extant  expired;  and  however  cheap  and  contemptible  a 
Thing  an  Almanack  may  seem  to  be,  it  annually  costs  me  much 
Time  and  hard  study  to  prepare  one  for  you  ;  and  your  chearful 
Acceptance  of  my  Labours,  for  these  Twenty-seven  Years  past, 
has  encouraged  me  more  to  continue  in  this  your  Service  than 
the  Reward  I  receive  for  it. 

The  Affairs  of  my  House  are  of  a  publick  Nature,  and  there 
fore  I  hope  may  be  mentioned  here  without  Offence  to  my  Reader: 
The  Sign  I  advertised  last  Year  by  Reasons  of  some  little  Disap 
pointments,  is  not  put  up,  but  the  Thing  intended  to  be  signified 
by  it  is  to  be  had  according  to  said  Advertisement.  And  I  beg 
L,eave  further  to  add,  that  if  any  with  a  View  of  Gain  to  them 
selves,  or  Advantage  to  their  Friends,  have  reported  Things  of 
my  House  in  contradiction  to  the  aforesaid  Advertisement,  I 


234  ALMANACK  FOR  1752. 

would  only  have  those  whom  they  would  influence  consider,  that 
where  the  Narrator  is  not  honest,  is  not  an  Eye  or  Ear  Witness, 
can't  trace  his  story  to  the  original,  has  it  only  by  Hear-say, 
a  thousand  such  Witnesses  are  not  sufficient  to  hang  a  Dog: 
&  I  hope  no  Gentleman  that  travels  the  Road  will  have  his 
Mind  bias'd  against  m}^  House  by  such  idle  Reports.  N.  Ames. 


N.  B.  When  this  Almanack  was  sent  to  the  Press,  I  had  no 
certain  Account  of  the  Act  of  Parliament  for  reducing  the  Year  to 
New  Stile.  

JANUARY. 

Of  all  the  Views,  the  first  and  chief  Request 

Of  each,  is  to  be  richer  than  the  rest : 

And  yet  no  Doubts  the  poor  Man's  Draught  controul, 

He  dreads  no  Poison  in  his  homely  Bowl : 

Then  fear  the  deadl}'  Drug  when  Gems  divine 

Enchase  the  Cup,  and  sparkle  in  the  Wine.  Dryd.Juv. 

FEBRUARY. 

At  lowest  Ebb  of  Fortune  when  you  lay 
Contented,  then  how  happy  was  the  Day : 
But  Oh  !  the  Curse  of  aiming  to  be  great ! 
Dazled  with  Hopes  we  cannot  see  the  Cheat. 
When  wild  Ambition  in  the  Heart  we  find, 
Farewell  Content  and  Quiet  of  the  Mind. 

MARCH. 

'Tis  strange  how  some  Men's  Tempers  suit, 

Like  Bawd  and  Brandy  with  Dispute, 

That  for  their  own  Opinions  stand  fast 

Only  to  have  them  claw'd  and  canvast ; 

And  when  disputes  are  wearied  out, 

'Tis  Int'rest  still  resolves  the  Doubt.  HUD. 

APRIIv. 

All  Faiths  are  to  their  own  Believers  just, 

For  none  believe  because  they  will,  but  must : 

By  Education  most  have  been  misled, 

So  they  believe  because  they  were  so  bred : 

The  Priest  continues  what  the  Nurse  began, 

And  thus  the  Child  imposes  on  the  Man..  Dryd. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1752.  235 


MAY. 

Thus  then  to  Man  the  Voice  of  Nature  spake, 

"  Go,  from  the  Creatures  thy  Instructions  take, 

"  Learn  from  the  Birds  what  Food  the  Thickets  yield, 

"  Learn  from  the  Beasts  the  Physick  of  the  Field, 

"  Thy  Arts  of  Building  from  the  Bee  receive, 

"  Learn  of  the  Mole  to  Plow  the  Worm  to  weave. 

JUNE. 

How  happy  is  the  harmless  Country-Maid, 
Who  rich  by  Nature  scorns  superfluous  Aid  ! 
Whose  modest  Cloaths  no  wanton  Eyes  invite, 
But  like  her  soul  Preserves  the  native  White. — 
No  Care  but  Love  can  discompose  her  Breast, 
Love  of  all  Cares  the  sweetest  and  the  best ! 

JUIyY. 

Content  is  Wealth,  the  Riches  of  the  Mind, 
And  happy  he  who  can  that  Treasure  find ! 
But  the  base  Miser  starves  amidst  his  Store 
Broods  on  his  Gold ;  and  griping  still  at  more 
Sits  sadly  pining  and  believes  he's  poor. 

AUGUST. 

Look  round  our  World;  behold  the  Chain  of  Love, 

Combining  all  below  and  all  above  : 

See  plastick  Nature  working  to  this  End, 

The  single  Atoms  each  to  other  tend, 

Attract,  attracted  to,  the  next  in  Place, 

Form'd  and  impell'd  it's  Neighbor  to  embrace. 

Pope. 

SEPTEMBER. 

My  Son  with  those  never  consent  to  go, 

Who  all  their  Greatness  to  their  Meanness  owe  ; 

*  '  When  Vice  prevails,  and  impious  Men  bear  sway,' 

Rather  than  be  as  meanly  great  as  they, 

Contented  live  and  die  without  a  Name, 

'  Till  GOD'S  decisive  Day  reveals  thy  Fame. 

*  This  line  from  Addison's  Cato. 

OCTOBER. 

'  Tis  equal  if  our  Fortunes  should  augment, 
And  stretch  themselves  to  the  same  vast  Extent 
With  our  Desires  ;  or  those  Desires  abate, 
Shrink  and  contract  themselves  to  fit  our  State : 


236  ALMANACK    FOR    1752. 

We  to  our  selves  may  all  our  wishes  grant, 
For  nothing  coveting  we  nothing  want. 

NOVEMBER. 

When  Empire  in  its  Childhood  first  appears, 

A  watchful  Fate  o'ersees  its  tender  Years ; 

'  Till  grown  more  strong,  it  thrusts  and  stretches  out, 

And  elbows  all  the  Kingdoms  round  about; 

Then  down  the  Precipice  of  Time  it  goes, 

And  sinks  in  Minutes  which  in  Ages  rose. 

DECEMBER. 

All  Nature  is  but  Art,  unknown  to  thee, 

All  Chance,  Direction  which  thou  can'st  not  see, 

All  Discord,  Harmony  not  understood, 

All  partial  Evil,  universal  Good : 

And  spight  of  Pride,  in  erring  Reason's  spight, 

One  Truth  is  clear ;  whatever  Is,  is  right. 

Pope. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Now  comes  pinching  close  times. 

If  you  would  thrive,  first  contrive,  &  then  strive. 

MARCH. 

Aeolus  opens  his  Caves  Mouth,  and  jarring  Winds  their  airy  Forces 
muster. 

APRIL. 

Many  unlucky  Accidents  happen,  perhaps  some  Buildings  destroyed 
by  Fire. 

Put  a  stop  to  Pride,  Idleness  and  Luxury,  then  should  we  find  the 
Times  grow  better:  but  not  before. 

MAY. 

Observe  it  you  may,  that  Cunning  Men  are  not  always  honest :  trust 
them  as  you  have  try'd  them. 

JULY. 

More  Recreation  than  Trade  &  Business. 

Much  outside  Grandure  in  gay  Apparel,  but  an  empty  Purse,  and 
selfish  Minds  within. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1752.  237 

SEPTEMBER. 

The  Days  Shorten  space,  therefore  improve  them  well. 

OCTOBER. 

A  Strife  about  Trifles,  while  Matters  of  Importance  are  slightily  pass'd 
over. 

The  South  &  North  Winds  strive — the  North  prevails. 

NOVEMBER. 

The  Stars  and  sputtering  Lamps  proclaim 
The  near  approach  of  Snow  or  Rain. 

DECEMBER. 

Bad  Times,  Dull  Drink,  and  clouded  Minds :  Make  heavy,  listless,  idle 
Bodies. 

Such  Tydings  come,  as  are  pleasing  to  some. 
This  Year. — Errors  excepted— makes  a  good  End. 


AMES,    1752. 

Altho'  I  have  gained  many  established  Truths  from  repeated 
Observations  and  Experiments  in  the  practice  of  Medicine,  I 
cannot  pretend  to  communicate  any  new  Discovery  to  the 
Learned,  since  all  I  could  say,  if  I  had  (instead  of  two  Pages)  a 
Folio  to  fill,  is  contained  in  the  real  History  of  Nature,  as  given 
by  a  Sydenham  and  a  Cheyne  in  their  excellent  Writings.  But 
for  the  sake  of  those  who  know  not  the  Laws  of  Nature,  and  are 
unacquainted  with  the  Operation  of  her  Hands,  I  shall  fill  these 
two  Pages  with  a  Word :  First,  to  those  of  my  Readers  who  are 
athletick,  healthy  and  strong :  secondly,  to  those  who  are 
valetudinary,  infirm,  sickly,  and  of  weak  Constitutions. 

To  the  athletick,  healthy,  and  strong  :  Your  Bodies,  like  a  well 
regulated  Clock,  are  a  wonderful  Machine  consisting  of  an  infinite 
Variety  of  branching  and  winding  Canals,  thro'  whose  cylindrical 
and  conick  Tubes  the  Blood,  a  Fluid  whose  compounding  Parts 
are  of  different  Densities,  by  the  Momentum  of  the  Heart,  like 
the  main  Spring  of  a  Watch,  is  perpetually  propel'd  forward  in 
an  unwearied  Circulation :  and  the  Glands,  those  excretory 
Ducts  by  which  Nature  drains  her  Superfluities  from  the  Com 
mon  Mass,  are  so  situated  and  circumstanced  that  all  the  Fluids, 


238  ALMANACK    FOR    1752. 

and  no  more,  which  Nature  would  have  secerned,  are  drawn  off: 
In  this  your  Health  consists :  for  in  any  Animal  where  the 
secretations  are  regular,  the  Health  is  sound  and  good.  But,  alas ! 
there  are  Alterations  which  your  Senses  are  imperceptible  of, 
with  Regard  to  the  Air  you  breathe  in,  the  Meat  and  Drink  you 
take  to  support  you,  the  Sleep  to  refresh  you,  or  that  Watchful 
ness  your  bodily  Exercise  require,  or  those  Passions  or  Pertur 
bations  of  Mind  that  arise  from  external  Things  :  from  each  of 
these  Quarters  your  Health  may  be  instantly  attacked,  and  that 
wonderful  Machine  that  with  an  even  Hand,  according  to  the 
L,aws  of  Nature  carried  on  a  due  Circulation  and  Secretion  of 
all  the  Juices  may  be  so  altered  as  to  throw  out  those  Balsams 
of  Life  that  ought  to  be  retained,  or  to  retain  those  parts  of  the 
Blood  that  are  worn  out  with  Circulation,  and  ought  to  be  flung 
out  as  Excrements,  &  whilst  the  Machine  is  clog'd  and  loaded 
with  these  Obstructions,  the  thinking  Thing  cries  out  with 
excrutiating  Pains.  On  each  of  the  above-mentioned  Heads, 
called  Non-naturals,  Physicians  have  wrote  largely. — 

I  shall  just  caution  you  against  some  Dangers  that  may  arise 
from  one  of  those  Quarters,  viz :  Eating  &  Drinking :  the 
Antediluvians  had  not  learn 'd  the  Art  of  Intemperance,  therefore 
the}^  attained  to  the  Age  of  900  Years,  the  poisonous  Exhalations 
of  the  Air  were  expel'd  by  the  Perspiration  of  their  own  healthful 
Bodies :  but  when  they  came  to  overload  their  Machine  with 
animal  Food,  their  900  Years  dwindled  away  to  Three  score  and 
ten :  but  if  with  their  Meat  Men  would  be  contented  with  such 
Drink  as  Nature  requires  to  dilute  their  Food,  and  wash  away 
the  Crudities  that  arise  by  their  Cramming,  they  might  gener 
ally  attain  the  extent  of  that  abreviated  Span  of  Life  that  is 
allotted  for  the  present  Age  of  Man : — Strong  Waters  were  for 
merly  used  only  by  the  Direction  of  Physicians :  but  now 
Mechanicks  and  low-liv'd  Labourers  drink  RUM  like  Fountain- 
Water,  and  they  can  infinitely  better  endure  it  than  the  idle, 
unactive,  and  sedentary  Part  of  Mankind :  but  DEATH  is  in  the 
bottom  of  the  Cup  of  every  one.  Does  the  great  Doctor  Cheyne 
lie  when  he  says  that  neither  Laudanum  nor  Arsenick  will  kill 
more  certainly,  altho'  more  quickly  ?  You  may  feel  High-spirited 
while  your  Blood  boils  into  Sulphur  and  Flame  :  So  you  might 
walk  (for  the  present  safely)  if  the  Sands  of  the  Earth  were 


ALMANACK  FOR  1752.  239 

Gun-Powder,  'till  the  Spark  came :    but  what  could  secure  you 
in  the  Time  of  the  Explosion  ? 

Secondly,  to  the  valetudinary,  infirm  and  sickly.  Your 
Bodies  were  made  in  the  same  perfect  and  compleat  Manner 
with  others  :  and  whether  your  present  Infirmities  are  the  Effect 
of  your  own  Mistakes,  or  Hereditary  from  your  Ancestors,  is 
worth  your  Consideration  :  with  Regard  to  the  Method  of  Cure, — 
Where  the  Disease  prevails  and  Nature  gives  out,  'tis  in  vain  to 
try  to  raise  the  Dead,  but  exercise  Abstinence,  proper  Evacua 
tions,  with  Time  and  Patience  will  cure  most  Diseases,  or  make 
them  tolerable : — Those  Patients  whose  Cases  are  chronick,  who 
will  not  be  govern'd  in  their  Diet,  must  not  expect  lasting  Bene 
fit  from  Physick.  But  to  know  what  Exercises,  and  what  Eva 
cuations  you  must  use  in  your  several  Cases;  from  what  you 
must  abstain,  what  you  may  eat  and  drink,  how  long  you  must 
continue  in  such  Courses,  consult  your  Physicians :  and  if  you 
would  have  the  best  Physician's  Advice  on  such  an  important 
Subject,  read  Dr.  Cheyne's  Essay  upon  Health  and  Long  Life, 
and  the  English  Malady. 

N.  AMES. 

>»otes  OH  1752. —  This  year  the  Almanack  opens  with  a  very 
peculiar  poetical  effort  from  our  tavern-keeper-astronomer.  The  sentiment 
would  indicate  a  very,  very  conscientious  Bardolph,  or  else  an  Ordinary 
where  the  exciseman's  visits  were  not  particularly  necessary.  Such  very 
injudicious  remarks  indulged  in  at  this  period  of  civilization,  would 
ruin  the  prospects  of  the  general  government,  if  not  the  retailer  of 
spirits,  and  materially  reduce  the  monthly  surplus  in  the  Treasury.  It  is 
hardly  probable  that  the  Doctor  kept  a  temperance  house. 

On  the  following  page,  it  is  to  be  noted  that  the  slanderer  was  abroad 
in  the  land,  and  that  even  the  tavern  at  Dedham  was  not  exempt  from  his 
baneful  influence.  The  Doctor  apologises  for  the  non-appearance  of  the 
"  Sign  of  the  Sun  "  announced  last  year,  and  deprecates  the  custom  of 
condemnation  on  hearsay  testimony. 

This  year  1752  was  noted  for  the  adoption  by  the  British  Parliament, 
of  the  Gregorian  Calendar,  but  Ames'  Almanack  did  not  make  the  change, 
as  he  "  had  no  certain  Account  of  the  Act  *  :;:  for  reducing  the  Year 
to  New  Stile." 

The  Act  mentioned  was  in  substance  thus : — 

According  to  an  Act  of  Parliament  passed  in  the  24th  year  of  the 
Reign  of  George  II  and  in  the  year  1751,  the  Old  Style  ceases  with  the 
close  of  the  2d  day  of  September  1752,  and  eleven  succeeding  days  are 


240  ALMANACK    FOR    1752. 

dropped  from  the  Calendar,  and  the  following  day,  which  otherwise 
would  be  Thursday  the  3d,  becomes  Thursday  the  I4th  of  September — 
the  month  September  1752,  containing  therefore  but  nineteen  (19)  days. 

This  year  some  of  the  verses  at  the  head  of  each  monthly  page  are  again 
extracted  from  Dryden,  and  Butler,  whose  Juvenal  and  Hudibras  are 
partly  laid  under  contribution,  while  the  Doctor  drops  in  a  few  lines  to 
connect  up  his  moralizing  with  their  sentiment,  making  a  couplet  with  a 
line  from  Addison,  while  the  author  of  the  "  Essay  on  Man  "  has  the  vale 
dictory  for  the  year. 

The  essay  for  1752  is  a  very  readable  lecture  on  Medicine  and  Health, 
fraught  with  wisdom  concerning  the  proper  observance  of  the  rules  of 
nature,  by  which  one  might  attain  the  age  of  goo  years,  which,  unhappily, 
is  reduced  by  injudicious  "  cramming"  to  a  paltry  "  three  score  and  ten." 

The  humor  in  the  usual  place  is  not  as  extensive  as  common,  yet  what 
^here  is  of  that  characteristic  as  well  as  wisdom,  is  of  the  usual  attractive 
and  amusing  quality. 

In  the  course  of  the  past  few  years,  allusions  deprecating  a  currency 
known  as  "  Old  Tenor  "  have  been  made,  and  for  the  better  understanding 
of  the  shrinkage  of  the  value  of  this  currency,  we  quote  the  various  prices 
of  almanacks  during  the  period  of  Ames'  publication. 

His  Almanack  consisted  of  but  one  sheet  of  paper  folded  to  make 
sixteen  (16)  pages,  and  was  not  increased  from  this  size,  from  its  inception 
in  1725  until  the  year  1759,  when  it  was  increased  by  the  addition  of  a  half 
sheet  making  the  pages  twenty-four  (24).  The  prices  of  the  earlier  issues 
are  not  noted. 

1737  to  1742.     Sixpence  single  and  Four  shillings  per  dozen. 
1743.     Eight  "         "          "     Six 

1744  to  1747.     Nine    "         "          "     Six 

1748  Sixteen  pence  single  and  Ten  shillings  per  dozen.  1749  to  1758 
Eighteen  pence  single  and  Twelve  shillings  per  dozen,  Old  Tenor.  At 
this  period,  "  Old  Tenor"  appears  to  have  reached  its  highest  point,  as  in 
this  latter  year  "  Spanish  Milled  Dollars  pass  for  Six  shillings  Lawful 
Money  and  Forty-five  shillings  Old  Tenor,  in  Massachusetts  Bay." 

The  restoration  of  specie  payments  probably  occurred  shortly  after,  as 
in  1759  with  increased  size  of  book  the  price  was  reduced,  and  remained 
at  about  same  figure  until  the  commencement  of  the  Revolutionary 
period.  The  prices  are  quoted. 

1759  Five  coppers  single  and  Two  pistareens  per  dozen. 

1760  ist  Edition  Seven     "  "          "     Three  shillings     "         " 

2d        "         Five       "  "          "     Two  pistareens     "         " 

1761  to  1763  Six         "  "          "     half  a  dollar 

1764    "    1765  Seven    "  "     Three  shillings  four  pence) 

per  dozen.  / 


ALMANACK  FOR  1753.  241 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1753. 


By  NA  THAN1EL  AMES. 


BOSTON;  NEW  ENGLAND  :  Printed  by  J.  DRAPER 

for  the  BOOKSELLERS. 
Price  12  s.  per  Dozen,  and  /£  d.  single,  Old  Tenor. 


What  Blessings  LORD  thy  Bounty  gives, 

Let  me  not  cast  away  : 
For  GOD  is  paid  when  Man  receives — 

To  enjoy  is  to  obey. 
Yet  not  to  Earth's  contracted  Span 

Thy  Goodness  let  me  bound ; 
Or  think  Thee  Lord  alone  of  Man, 

When  thousand  Worlds  are  round. 


Besides  the  Kclipses  of  the  Sun  and  Moon  this  Year,  there 
will  be  a  curious  Phoenomena,  which,  tho'  observed  by  modern 
Astronomers,  has  not  been  mentioned  by  our  New  England 
Almanack  makers  ;  I  mean  a  Transit  of  the  Planet  Mercury  over 
the  Body  of  the  Sun. — On  Sunday  May  6,  the  Sun  will  rise  with 
Mercury  making  a  black  Spot  in  his  Body,  and  as  §  will  be  7  h. 
46  m.  passing  over  the  Sun,  his  going  off  will  be  seen  by  us 
according  to  the  following  Calculation, 

Middle  of  the  Eclipse,  53  min.  before  Sun-rise. 

The  Sun  riseth  -       -  4  h.  46  min. 

Central  Egress  or  End  --  7  h.  46  min.  Morning:  so  that  £ 
will  be  seen  on  the  ®'s  Disk  for  3  h.  after  the  ©  riseth. 


JANUARY. 

Now  all  amidst  the  Rigours  of  the  Year, 
In  the  wild  Depth  of  Winter,  while  without 
The  ceaseless  Winds  blow  Ice,  be  my  Retreat 
A  rural  shelter'd  solitary  Scene ; 
Where  ruddy  Fire,  and  beaming  Tapers  join, 
To  chear  the  Gloom. 


242  ALMANACK    FOR    1753- 

FEBRUARY. 

Dread  Winter  spreads  his  latest  Glooms, 


And  reigns  tremendous  o'er  the  conquer'd  Year. 

How  dead  the  vegetable  Kingdom  lies  ! 

How  dumb  the  tuneful !  Horror  wide  extends 

His  melancholy  Empire,     Here  fond  Man  ! 

Behold  thy  pictur'd  Life ;   pass  some  few  Years, 

Thy  flow'ring  Spring,  thy  Summer's  ardent  Strength, 

Thy  sober  Autumn  fading  into  Age, 

And  pale  concluding  Winter  comes  at  last, 

And  shuts  the  Scene. 

MARCH. 

Borrow  part  of  Winter  for  thy  Corn  ; 

And  early  with  thy  Team  the  Glebe  in  Furrows  turn  ? 

That  while  the  Turf  lies  open,  and  unbound, 

Succeeding  Suns  may  bake  the  mellow  Ground  : 

But  if  the  Soil  be  barren,  only  scar 

The  Surface,  and  but  lightly  print  the  Share.        Dryd.  Virg. 

APRIIy. 


-The  penetrative  Sun 


His  Force  deep-darting  to  the  dark  Retreat 
Of  Vegetation,  sets  the  steaming  Power 
At  large,  to  wander  o'er  the  vernant  Earth. 
From  the  moist  Meadow  to  the  wither'd  Hill 
Led  by  the  Breeze,  the  vivid  Verdure  runs 
And  swells,  and  deepens,  to  the  cherish'd  Eye. 

MAY. 

At  once  array'd 

In  all  the  Colours  of  the  flushing  Year, 

By  Nature's  swift  and  secret  working  Hand, 

The  Garden  glows  and  fills  the  lib'ral  Air 

With  lavish  Fragrance  ;  while  the  promis'd  Fruit 

Lies  yet  a  little  Embrio,  unperceiv'd 

Within  its  crimson  Folds. 

JUNE. 

Full  swell  the  Woods,  there  every  Music  wakes, 
Mixt  in  wild  Concert,  with  the  Warbling  Brooks 
Increas'd,  the  distant  Bleatings  of  the  Hills, 
The  hollow  Lows  responsive  from  the  Vale. 
Can  Man  forbear  to  join  the  general  Smile 
Of  Nature  ?     can  fierce  Passions  vex  his  Breast, 
While  every  Gale  is  Peace,  and  every  Grove  is  melody. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1753.  243 

JULY. 


-All 


From  Pole  to  Pole  is  undistinguished  Blaze. 

Hot  ascending  Steams, 

And  keen  Reflection  pain. — The  Mower  sinking  heaps 
O'er  him  the  humid  Hay,  with  flowers  perfum'd, 
And  scarce  a  chirping  Grass  hopper  is  heard 
Through  the  dumb  Mead.     Distressful  Nature  pants. 

AUGUST. 

— Whate'er  the  Wintry  Frost 

Nitrous  prepar'd  ;  the  various  blossom'd  Spring, 
Put  in  white,  promise  forth ;  the  Summer  Suns 
Concocted  strong,  rush  boundless  now  to  view, 
Full  perfect  all. 

SEPTEMBER. 


-Let  us  tread  the  Maze 


Of  Autumn  unconfin'd  ;  and  taste,  reviv'd 
The  Breath  of  Orchard,  big  with  bending  Fruit, 
Obedient  to  the  Breeze,  and  beating  Way 
From  the  deep-loaded  Bough,  a  mellow  Shower 
Incessant  melts  away.     The  Juicy  Pear, 
The  downy  Peach,  the  shining  Plumb. 

OCTOBER. 

Some  Cyders  have,  by  Art  or  Age,  unlearn'd 
Their  genuine  Relish,  &  of  sundry  Vines — Assum'd  the  Flavour. 

A  German  oft  has  swill'd  his  Throat  and  sworn, 

Deluded,  that  Imperial  Rhine  bestow'd 
The  generous  Rummer,  w'hilst  the  Owner  pleas'd 
Laughs  only  at  his  Guests  thus  entertain'd 
With  foreign  Vintage  from  his  Cyder-Cask. 

Sped. 

NOVEMBER. 

See  Winter  comes,  to  rule  the  vary'd  Year, 
Sullen  and  sad  with  all  his  rising  Train, 
— Vapours,  and  Clouds,  and  Storms — 
Hang  o'er  the  farthest  Verge  of  Heaven, — The  Sun 
Scarce  spreads  o'er  Ether  the  dejected  Day. 

DECEMBER. 

Descending  to  the  long  dark  Night, 

Wide  shading  all,  the  prostrate  World  resigns. 


244  ALMANACK  FOR  1753. 

Nor  is  the  Night  unwish'd  ;  while  vital  Heat, 
Ivight,  L/ife,  and  Joy,  the  dubious  Day  forsake. 

— The  cherish'd  Fields 
Put  on  their  Winter  Robes  of  purest  White. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

The  last  Year's  Almanack  now  being  dead  yet  speaketh. 
Now  Jack  Frost  enters  many  a  Cellar  by  Night,  Vi  et  armis,  and  is  not 
guilty  of  Burglary  tho'  he  does  much  Mischief. 

FEBRUARY. 

Many  Accidents  hurtful  to  Mankind  happen  about  these  Days. 
The  burthen'd  Elements  declare  a  mighty  Storm  is  near. 
An  expectation  of  great  Changes  ere  long. 

MARCH. 
Heavy  Travelling  and  difficult  Sailing. 

APRIL. 

If  all  Men  would  endeavour  to  be  Honest :    How  happy  would  the 
Times  be ! 

By  Conduct  good  and  wise 

a  sinking  People  soon  may  rise. 
Peaceable  Negotiations  are  yet  going  on. 

MAY. 

Politicians,  Projectors,  Directors, 
Dictators  and  Detractors, 
How  many  there  be  ? 
But  how  fruitless  are  most, 
You  may  easily  see. 

JULY. 

Altho'  the  Season's  extreamly  Hot, 
Old  Tenor  cannot  be  forgot. 

AUGUST. 

If  you  would  do  Business  to  purpose,  improve  the  Morning. 
The  Indian  Corn  now  grows  amain  : 
The  Farmer's  pleas'd  with  hopes  of  Gain. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1753- 


245 


SEPTEMBER. 
Two  potent  Parties  long  contending,  are  now  reconcil'd. 

OCTOBER. 

Those  that  are  Husbands  good, 

Should  now  get  in  their  Cyder,  Grain  &  Wood. 

An  honest  Friend  is  good  Company,  but  a  good  Conscience  is  the  best 
Guest. 

NOVEMBER. 

All  complain  the  Times  are  bad,  but  how  few  try  to  make  them  better. 
The  Idol  SEi,F,  is  yet  ador'd  too  much. 

DECEMBER. 
The  Cold  searches  every  Crevice. 

Another  Year  the  Sun  its  Course  has  ran 
Have  we  improv'd  Days  well  since  it  began  ? 


Since  the  Characters  in  the  Almanack  are  not  understood  by 
many  of  my  young  Readers,  I  shall  set  down  the  Names  and 
Characters  of  them,  viz.: 


7  PLANETS. 

5  ASPECTS. 

12  SIGNS. 

T?  Saturn. 

cf  Conjunction. 

T  Aries. 

^  Libra. 

21  Jupiter. 

*  Sextile. 

b'  Taurus. 

HP  Scorpio. 

c?  Mars. 
<§  Sol  or  the  Sun. 

D  Quartile. 

K  Gemini. 
©  Cancer. 

7$  Sagitarius. 
V3  Capricorn  us. 

9  Venus. 

A  Trine. 

Q.  Leo. 

«K  Aquarius. 

§  Mercury. 

cP  Opposition. 

m  Virgo. 

X  Pisces. 

3  the  Moon. 

0  Earth. 

£  Drag.  Head.    ^Drag.  Tail. 

When  the  Moon  is  Apoge,  she  is  furthest  from  the  Earth; 
when  Perige  the  nearest  to  the  Earth. 


246  ALMANACK   FOR    1753. 

RKADKR, 

Something  that's  great  and  sweet  I've  dar'd  to  join, 

With  these  dull  Labours  which  are  only  mine : 

I  mean  those  far  unequal'd,1  sublime  Lays, 

For  which  a  Tompsorfs  Muse  deserves  the  Praise. 

Since  I  to  serve  you  in  this  Way  began 

Slow  Saturn  has  one  Period  almost  ran. 

And  Years  and  Months  and  Days  must  now  no  more 

Commence  upon  the  Times  they  did  before : 

But  I  the  Reason  of  this  Change  explore. 

Since  this  is  the  Second  Year  corrected  to  Solar  Time,  and 
the  general  Date  of  all  Europe ;  and  almost  all  the  Almanack- 
Writers  for  the  last  Year  in  their  several  Performances  gave 
some  Account  of  this  Matter :  I  should  have  only  conform'd  to 
the  Act  of  Parliament  without  saying  any  Thing  further :  But 
for  the  sake  of  many  that  take  my  Almanack,  and  have  not 
seen  or  heard  what  has  been  said  by  others,  I  shall  attempt  to 
give  them  the  Reasons  of  this  Alteration  briefly  as  I  can.  The 
main  Intention  in  striking  off  the  Eleven  Days  between  the  2d 
and  i4th  of  September  A.  D.  1752,  is  to  produce  an  Uniformity 
in  the  Computation  of  Time  throughout  the  Christian  part  of 
the  World  :  The  Reasons  given  by  the  Government  at  Home  for 
this  Alteration  in  the  Preamble  of  their  Act  of  Parliament,  are 
as  follows,  viz: 

1.  Whereas  the  (Julian)  Year  began  on  the  25th  Day  of  March 
differ'd  from  the  Legal  Method  of   Computation  in  Scotland, 
and  from  the  Usage  of  other  Nation,  which  occasion'd  frequent 
Mistakes  in  the  Date  of  Deeds  and  other  Writings,  &c. 

2.  That  the  Spring  Equinox  at  the  Council  of  Nice  in  the 
Year  of  our  lyord  325,  happened  on  the  2ist  Day  of  March,  now 
happens  on  the  Qth  or  loth  of  the  same  Month,  and  the  error  is 
still  increasing  :    and  if  not  remedied,  would  in  Process  of  Time, 
occasion  the  several  Equinoxes,  and  Solstices  to  fall  at  very 
different  Times  in  the  civil  Year  from  what  they  formerly  did, 
which  might  tend  to  mislead  Persons  Ignorant  of  the  said  Alter 
ation. 

3.  That  other  Nations  of  Europe  have  received  and  estab 
lished  a  Method  of  correcting  the  Calendar,  so  as  the  Equinoxes 

1  The  Verses  over  each  Monthly  Page, 


ALMANACK  FOR  1753.  247 

and  Solstices  may  fall  on  the  same  nominal  Days  on  which  they 
happened  at  the  said  Council. 

4.  That  Uniformity  in  this  Matter  will  be  of  Conveniency 
to  Merchants  and  other  Persons  corresponding  with  other 
Nations  and  Countries. 

For  these  Reasons  among  others, 

It  is  enacted,  That  the  Year  henceforward  shall  begin  on  the 
first  Day  of  January :  That  every  Fourth  Hundred  Year  is  to 
consist  of  366  Days,  as  is  usual  in  the  Bissextile  or  L,eap  Year ; 
but  all  other  whole  Hundred  Years  of  365  Days  only :  the  Years 
between  which  whole  Hundreds  to  be  common  and  Bissextile  as 
formerly. 

Julius  Caesar  with  the  Assistance  of  a  famous  Egyptian  Mathe 
matician  was  the  Contriver  of  the  Form  of  the  Year  according 
to  Old  Stile  which  consisted  of  the  Astronomical  Quantity  of 
365  Days  and  6  Hours :  so  that  every  4th  Year  one  compleat 
Day  was  added.  The  Account  of  Time  has  each  Year  run  a 
head  of  Time  by  the  Sun  n  min.  5  sec.  i8th  33  fourths :  or  44 
min.  21  sec.  i4th  12  fourths,  every  4  Years:  and  consequently  4  d. 
i  h.  55  min.  3  sec.  40  thirds  in  400  Years  :  And  so  from  the  Council 
of  Nice  when  the  Calender  was  setled  in  the  Year  325,  to  the 
Year  1752  being  1427  Years,  the  Time  by  Account  is  forward  of 
that  by  the  Sun  10  d.  23  h.  43  m.  Therefore  u  Days  was  left 
out  of  September  as  before  mentioned,  which  makes  the  Equi 
noxes  and  Solstices  to  fall  on  the  same  nominal  Days  on  which 
they  happen'd  at  the  said  Council  of  Nice. 

We  are  not  to  forget  our  Birth-Days  : — Nor  does  this  Act  of 
Parliament  anticipate  the  Payment  of  Debts,  &c. : — Therefore  I 
have  in  the  4th  Column  of  this  Almanack  given  you  the  Days  of 
the  Months  according  to  Old  Stile. — And  as  my  last  Year's 
Almanack  was  carried  out  1 1  Days  too  long,  this  Year  begins 
the  2ist  Day  of  December  Old  Stile  which  must  evermore  be 
accounted  the  first  Day  of  January. 


on  1753.- -The  "  Doctor  Watts  "  style  of  hymn  embellishes 
the  title  page  of  this  year,  which  Dr.  Ames  styles  the  "  Gregorian,"  out  of 
compliment  to  the  New  Style  now  in  vogue  through  all  the  British  king 
dom. 

Thompson,  the  man  who  sang  about  "  gentle  Spring,"  (a  season  now 


248  ALMANACK    FOR    1754. 

but  little  known,)  and  our  old  friend  Dryden  contribute  each  a  portion  for 
the  introduction  of  the  first  three  months,  while  Addison  is  largely  drawn 
upon  for  the  balance  of  thje  captions.  Even  with  no  acknowledgment,  the 
lines  at  the  head  of  October  month,  with  their  humorously  satirical  allu 
sion,  would  generally  be  allowed  as  Spectatorial. 

For  the  benefit  of  young  readers,  a  short  lesson  in  astronomy  sets  out 
the  representative  characters  of  the  Planets,  Aspects  and  Signs  of  the 
Zodiac. 

The  lecture  this  year  is  upon  the  Gregorian  Calendar,  with  the  reasons 
stated  for  the  change  from  old  to  new  "  stile."  The  doctor  enlarges  upon 
previous  calculations,  and  finally,  having  made  his  year  1752  too  long  by 
eleven  days,  he  atones  for  the  act  by  asking  his  readers  to  drop  the  last 
eleven  days  of  1752,  and  begin  the  year  1753  on  the  2Ist  December:  hence 
his  remark  in  the  weather  column  under  January  "  The  last  year's  alma 
nack  now  being  dead,  yet  speaketh,"  an  adaptation  of  the  Latin  motto  on 
Patridge's  English  Almanack  published  long  after  his  death — Etiam 
mortuus,  loquitur. 

The  humorous  drops  still  savor  of  the  continued  bias  of  the  Author ; 
"  Old  Tenor  "  still  holds  foremost  place,  with  Hard  Times  a  close  follower. 


THE     ALMANACK     FOR    1754. 


By   Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON,  NEW-ENGLAND : 


Printed  by  J.  DRAPER,  for  the  BooKSEWvERS. 
Price  12  s.  per  Dozen,  and  18  d.  Single,  Old  Tenor. 


Those  Stars  that  twinkling  Lustre  send 

Are  Suns,  and  rolling  Worlds  those  Suns  attend, 

For  Heaven's  eternal  King, 

Who  bid  this  Universe  from  Nothing  spring, 
Did  at  his  Word  bid  num'rous  Worlds  appear, 
And  rising  Worlds  the  all-powerful  Word  did  hear. 
The  Stars  shall  drop,  the  Sun  shall  lose  his  Flame, 
But  Thou,  O,  God,  forever  shine  the  same. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1754.  249 

READER, 

I  have  this  Year  collected  the  Poetry  for  the  Almanack  from 
several  Authors :  what  typographical  Errors  escape  I  hope  you 
will  correct  with  your  Pen.  I  have  flll'd  the  two  last  Pages  with 
an  Essay  on  Regimen.  I  don't  pretend  to  direct  the  Learned — 
The  Rich  and  Voluptuous  will  scorn  my  Direction,  and  sneer  or 
rail  at  any  that  would  reclaim  them,  but  since  this  Sheet  enters 
the  solitary  Dwellings  of  the  Poor  &  Illiterate,  where  the  studied 
Ingenuity  of  the  Learned  Writer  never  comes,  if  these  brief 
Hints  do  good,  it  will  rejoice  the  Heart  of 

your  humble  Servant, 

Nath.  Ames. 


JANUARY. 

Pride,  where  Wit  fails,  steps  in  to  our  Defence, 
And  fills  up  all  the  mighty  Void  of  Sense, 
If  once  right  Reason  drives  that  Cloud  away, 
Truth  breaks  upon  us  with  resistless  Day. 
Trust  not  your  self,  but  your  defects  to  know, 
Make  use  of  ev'ry  Friend, and  ev'ry  Foe. 

FEBRUARY. 

To  the  Unmarried  Ladies. 

Choose  him  who  bears  an  honest  Mind, 

If  he  has  common  Sense, 
And  is  to  moral  Good  inclin'd, 

With  common  Faults  dispense. 
By  Friends  are  often  wrong  Conjectures  made, 
But  your  own  Reason  best  your  Cause  will  plead. 

MARCH. 

Forbear  t'  insist  you  must 

A  Jointure  very  great, 
For  whom  you  with  your  Person  trust, 

Trust  him  with  your  Estate. 
If  Fortune  frowns — thence  comes  the  Bone  of  Strife, 

Betrays  Distrust — and  parts  the  Man  and  Wife. 

APRIL. 

The  breath  of  Spring  dissolves  the  Mountain's  Snow, 
Which  trickling  down,  with  murm'ring  Music  flow. 


250  ALMANACK    FOR    1754. 

Th'  approaching  Sun  darts  forth  his  chearful  Rays, 
And  vocal  Woods  resound  with  warbling  Lays. 
The  sportive  Lambs  skip  o'er  the  verdant  Plain 
And  joyful  Birds  their  tuneful  Voices  strain. 


All  Nature  laughs,  the  Groves  are  fresh  and  fair, 
The  Sun's  mild  Lustre  warms  the  vital  Air, 
Whilst  southern  Climes  his  sable  Absence  mourn 
We  feel  with  Joy  the  youthful  Spring's  Return. 
The  blooming  Trees  their  grateful  Fragrance  yield, 
And  od'rous  Flow'rs  paint  the  smiling  Field. 

JUNE. 

When  the  gay  Sun  first  breaks  the  Shades  of  Night, 
And  strikes  the  distant  Eastern  Hills  with  Light, 
Colour  returns,  the  Plains  their  Liv'ry  wear, 
And  a  bright  Verdure  cloaths  the  smiling  Year ; 
The  bloomy  Flow'rs  with  op'ning  Beauties  glow, 
And  grazing  Flocks  their  milky  Fleeces  show. 

JULY. 

When  to  the  Western  Main  the  Sun  descends, 
To  other  Lands  a  rising  Day  he  lends ; 
The  spreading  Dawn  another  Shepherd  spies, 
The  wakeful  Flocks  from  their  warm  Folds  arise 
Refresh'd  the  Peasant  seeks  his  early  Toil, 
And  bids  the  Plough  correct  the  fallow  Soil. 

AUGUST. 

See  how  the  Skies  with  gath'ring  Darkness  low'r, 
The  Branches  rustle  with  the  threaten'd  shower ; 
With  sudden  Blasts  the  Forest  murmurs  loud, 
Indented  Lightnings  cleave  the  sable  Cloud. 
Thunder  on  Thunder  breaks,  the  Tempest  roars 
And  Heav'n  discharges  all  its  watry  Stores. 

SEPTEMBER. 

The  Apples  now  on  loaded  Branches  shine, 
Whose  grateful  Juice  vie's  with  the  generous  Wine. 
Leave  Rum  for  Sots ;  and  with  a  modest  Sneer, 
Let  Farmers  boast  the  Virtues  of  their  Beer  ; 
Their  Barley  hous'd,  the  Year's  with  Plenty  crowned  ^ 
The  falling  Fruits  and  Berries  paint  the  Ground  ;        >• 
And  lavish  Nature  laughs  &  strows  her  stores  around.  ) 


ALMANACK  FOR  1754.  251 

OCTOBER. 

The  Sun  grows  low,  the  Summer  Heats  decay, 
And  all  her  Pride  and  Beauty  fades  away  : 
The  cold  Boreal  chilling  Rain  returns, 
Stript  of  her  fading  Pride  all  Nature  mourns; 
The  Trees  no  more  their  wonted  Verdure  boast, 
But  weep  in  dewy  Tears,  their  Beauty  lost. 

NOVEMBER. 

Some  few  by  Temp'rance  taught,  approaching  slow 

To  distant  Fate  by  easy  Journeys  go 

Gently  they  lay  them  down  ;  as  ev'ning  Sheep 

On  their  own  woolly  Fleece's  softly  sleep 

Still  quitting  Ground  by  unperceiv'd  decay, 

And  steal  themselves  from  Life,  and  melt  away. 

DECEMBER. 

While  we  in  Sleep's  Embraces  waste  the  Night, 
The  Climes  oppos'd  enjoy  Meridian  Light : 
And  when  those  Lands  the  busy  Sun  forsakes, 
With  us  again  the  rosy  Morning  wakes. 
In  lazy  Sleep  the  Night  rolls  swift  away, 
And  neither  Clime  laments  his  absent  Ray. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

I  tell  you  for  this  Winter  if  you  leave  your  Cellar  expos'd  to  Jack  Frost 
your  Sauce  will  be  froze,  &  Potatoes  all  lost. 

If  you  have  Coal  or  Wood  you'l  find  a  fire  very  good. 
Venus  &  Mars  smile  on  each  other,  touch  &  take. 

FEBRUARY. 

As  oft  as  we  do  good,  we  offer  Sacrifice. 

Tell  me  thy  Manners  and  I'll  tell  thy  Fortune. 

MARCH. 

Huge  Cakes  of  Ice  come  sweeping  down  the  Rivers,  &  all  their  Banks 
oreflow. 

Opportunity  rideth  Post. 

APRIL. 

Age  may  be  allowed  to  gaze  at  Beauty's  Blossom  But  Youth  must  climb 
the  Tree  and  enjoy  the  Fruit. 


252  ALMANACK    FOR    1754. 

MAY. 

(a)       *      ©      c?  (b)      A      €D      T?  (*)      cP*     fc      <7 

These  Aspects  threaten  buildings  with  Fire,  and  many  violent  unlucky 
Accidents  to  Men. 

A  riotous  Disposition  prevails  in  bad  Men. 

This  pleasant  Season  vertuous  Minds  placed  in  beautiful  Bodies  are 
very  acceptable. 

JUNE. 

Brisk  Gales  fill  the  Sails. 

Now  some  are  moaping  with  Disappointment  in  the  Affairs  of  Love. 

JULY. 
A  merry  Meeting  and  kind  Greeting  of  Friends. 

Phcebus  in  Thetis  Lap  lays  down  his  Head, 
&  Sheets  of  Lightning  dress  their  Bed. 

AUGUST. 

Dreams  like  notorious  Liars  are  generally  false,  but  may  speak  truth 
now  and  then. 

Be  on  your  guard,  for  the  Gates  of  Death  are  open  Night  &  Day. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Get  in  your  Salt  Hay  whilst  you  can. 

Dainty  Food  and  delicate  Fare  is  the  Mother  of  Diseases. 

OCTOBER. 

Much  Meat,  much  Malady. 
Finery  and  Poverty  go  together. 

NOVEMBER. 

More  die  by  Gluttony,  than  perish  by  the  Sword. 

Now  some  light  Heads  and  sharp  Wits  invent  smooth  Lies,  to  the 
prejudice  of  honest  Men. 

The  Herd  that  Graze,  the  barren  Fields,  complain  and  shrink  and 
shiver  with  the  beating  Rain. 

DECEMBER. 

There  is  no  sufficient  Recompense  for  an  unjust  Slander. 
All  things  are  chil'd  with  cold ;  but  Love  and  Zeal  are  Warm. 
It    is   hard    for   him   that   will   not   Labour,   to    excel  in    Wealth    or 
Knowledge. 

(a)  Sextile — Sun  and  Mars.  (b)  Trine — Sun  and  Saturn.  (c)  Oppo 
sition — Saturn  and  Mars. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1754.  253 

An  ESS  A  Y  upon  Regimen. 

It  is  true  as  a  Poet  says 

A  Law  Eternal  does  decree, 

That  all  Things  born  shall  Mortal  be  : 

Yet  the  Birds,  Beasts  and  Fishes,  if  not  devoured  by  one 
another  or  murdered  by  Man,  commonly  go  on  in  a  State  of 
Health  to  the  Period  of  Life.  Man  !  the  last  and  most  noble  of 
all  GOD'S  visible  Works  !  what  innumerable  Diseases  (besides  a 
strange  Pestilence1  with  foul  Ulcusculosa)  prey  on  thy  infant 
Posterity  !  How  soon  is  thy  Youth  forced  to  struggle  with 
inflammatory  Fevers  of  all  Kinds  !  If  from  the  Age  of  thirty-five 
to  forty  Years  we  escape  melting  into  Death  with  a  Consumption, 
or  swiming  to  the  Grave  in  a  Dropsy  ;  Our  Bowels  are  tortur'd 
with  cholick  Pangs,  our  Joynts  rack't  with  Gouts  and  Rheuma 
tisms,  our  Beauty  spoil'd  with  Erysipelas's,  the  Strength  of  our 
Muscles  broken  down,  and  their  springy  Fibres  torne  asunder 
with  Imposthumes,  Gangrenes,  and  Mortifications?  Is  it  not 
enough  for  mortal  Man  to  be  born,  to  live  his  appointed  Time, 
and  die  at  last !  Why,  does  the  Author  of  our  Beings  delight  in 
our  Misery  !  GOD  forbid  that  we  should  attribute  the  Cruelty  of 
a  Tyrant,  to  Infinite  Goodness :  No,  no,  the  monstrous  and 
extream  Tortures  which  many  labour  under,  are  the  growth  of 
their  own  Madness  and  Folly,  who  through  Laziness  rust  for 
want  of  Exercise,  or  for  the  sake  of  a  little  sensual  Pleasure 
cram  their  poor  passive  Machines  with  more  Meats  and  Drinks, 
than  they  can  easily  digest :  Our  Bodies  require  only  a  determi 
nate  Quantity  of  suitable  Matter  to  supply  the  Expences  of  Liv 
ing,  and  Nature  in  her  secret  Distribution  of  the  circulating 
Fluid  requires,  those  Compressions,  Extensions  and  other  Kinds 
of  Motions  necessary  to  separate  the  several  Humours,  and  cast 
them  into  their  proper  Channels,  to  retain  the  Balsamick  and 
throw  off  the  redundant  excrementitious  Particles  of  the  Blood. 

A  Body  found  by  Inheritance  with  this  determinate  Quantity 
of  suitable  Matter  and  these  Motions  and  Exercises  which  Nature 
requires,  (tho'  liable  to  Death  by  innumerable  Accidents)  will 
not  be  subject  to  the  Insults  of  the  common  Tribe  of  Distempers, 
under  the  Influence  of  which  some  Persons  groan  all  their  Days, 

1  The  Throat  Distemper. 


254  ALMANACK  FOR  1754. 

as  tho'  their  Lives  were  a  Purgatory  to  Expiate  for  Crimes  com 
mitted  in  some  other  State.  Says  an  ingenious  Author,  "When 
I  behold  a  fashionable  Table  set  out  in  its  Magnificence,  I  fancy 
I  see  Gouts  and  Dropsies,  Fevers  and  Lethargies,  with  other 
innumerable  Distempers  lying  in  Ambuscade  among  the  Dishes" 

THE  Divine  Artificer,  with  infinite  Skill,  made  the  Body  of 
Man,  a  Machine  at  first  capable  of  endless  Duration ;  but  the 
living  Principle  in  this  Machine,  which  actuates  and  governs  the 
divinely  contrived,  and  infinite  Number  of  it's  perfectly  finished 
Organs,  suffered  the  Admittance  of  o.  forbidden,  (if  not  an  hetro- 
geneous  Substance)  which  broke  the  divine  Harmony,  and  in  a 
certain  determinate  Number  of  Years  rendered  this  Machine 
unfit  for  this  self-motive,  self-active  Principle,  to  act  harmoniously 
upon.  In  the  Anti-diluvian  Days  these  Organs  would  perform 
their  intended  Uses,  for  the  Space  of  Nine  Hundred  Years :  But 
since  that  Fluid,  ( i.  e.  the  Blood, )  which  was  created  and  con 
trived  to  preserve  the  due  Plight  and  tonical  Vertue  of  these 
Organs,  is  made  of  animal  Substances,  the  divine  1  Warranty 
runs  but  for  threescore  Years  and  ten  or  fourscore.  Though  the 
foregoing  Hints  cannot  be  sufficiently  illustrated  in  the  con 
tracted  Limits  of  this  Page,  they  will  afford  the  following 
Corrolaries, 

i.  That  those  Men  who  have  their  Palates  solicited  with 
Variety  of  delightful  Tastes,  as  with  Cordials,  Drams,  Bitters, 
high  relished  Sauces  with  their  Food,  &c.  have  false  Appetites 
created.  2.  That  these  false  Appetites  being  bribed  betray 
their  Trusts  and  admit  of  Excess.  3.  That  these  Excesses  con 
tain  in  Embrio  the  first  Seeds  of  those  rebellious  Distempers 
which  spring  in  a  terrible  manner,  and  cut  down  Millions  before 
they  have  liv'd  out  half  their  Days.  4.  Those  Persons  whose 
male  Regimen  have  produc'd  Diseases,  ought  not  to  expect  Cure 
from  Physicians  without  reforming  their  ill  Conduct.  To  con 
clude,  All  distill'd  fermented  Spirits  contain  a  deleterious  Quality, 
they  destroy  the  Appetite  and  Digestion,  they  spoil  the  Blood 
and  Nerves,  and  bring  the  Persons  that  use  them  into  a  languid 
dispirited  State ;  and  will  as  assuredly  kill  at  last  as  any  other 
slow  Poison. 

1  Psalm  90. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1755.  255 

Oil  1754. — Borrowed  plumage  ornaments  the  almanack  this 
year ;  the  author  stating  that  he  has  drawn  upon  several  writers  for  this 
purpose — the  selections  being  both  instructive  and  calculated  to  please 
the  great  mass  of  his  readers. 

The  Doctor's  profession  asserts  itself  in  the  Essay ;  and  he  contributes 
a  most  practical  dissertation  upon  Regimen,  which,  if  "  more  thoroughly 
adopted,"  as  the  Author  remarks,  to  the  "  Poor  and  Illiterate,  "  the  pres 
ence  of  many  syllabled  words  therein  would  argue  a  more  advanced  state 
of  learning  among  the  aforesaid  impoverished  and  uncultivated,  than 
would  be  supposed  to  exist  among  the  classes  to  which  the  essays  were 
generally  addressed. 

The  Doctor  in  his  "  weather  column,"  however,  makes  amends,  by  in 
serting  much  of  a  more  readily  understood  character,  in  the  usual  merry 
stvle. 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1755. 


By  Nathaniel  Ames, 


BOSTON;  NEW  ENGLAND. 

Printed  by  J.  DRAPER,  for  the  Booksellers. 
Price  12  shillings  per  Dozen  &  18  pence  Single,  Old  Tenor. 


Whether  the  tall  Inhabitants  of  Jove, 

And  kindred  Worlds  that  round  one  Center  move, 

With  as  are  in  a  fallen  State,  or  no  ? 

Or  sin  and  pray,  as  we  poor  Mortals  do, 

Are  Mysteries  too  great  for  us,  (as  yet)  to  know, 

Doubtless  these  Strangers  altogether  join 

To  laud  one  Author,  infinite,  divine. 


JANUARY. 

Keep  Friendship  warm,  dear  Antidote  of  Strife, 
The  sweet  Beguiler  of  the  Ills  of  Life. 


256  ALMANACK    FOR    1755- 

Friendship,  by  Name,  is  courted  and  caress'd, 
But  banish'd  far  from  each  pretending  Breast : 
In  her  due  Room,  a  Net  of  Vermin  lies. 
And  selfish,  sordid  Furies  tyrannize. 


FEBRUARY. 

"  Let  there  be  Light,"   GOD  said  ;  and  lo, 
The  nimble  Beams  the  Fiat  heard, 
Sprang  from  the  Womb  of  ancient  Night, 
And  chearful  Light  it's  smiling  Visage  rear'd, 
On  purple  Wings  it  upward  flew, 
And  by  his  Order  fix'd  on  high  ; 

MARCH. 

Around  it's  darting  Glories  threw, 

And  stain'd  the  Curtains  of  the  Sky : 

Whither  it  paints  the  blushing  East 

With  rosy  Streaks,  or  gilds  the  West : 

Not  undiscern'd  by  Him  the  heav'nly  Ray, 

He  saw  that  it  was  good,  and  blest  the  infant  Day. 

APRIL. 

Within  the  Chambers  of  the  Globe  there  spy 

The  Beds  where  sleeping  Vegetables  lie, 

Till  the  glad  Summons  of  a  genial  Ray 

Unbind  the  Glebe,  and  call  them  out  to  Day. 

The  gentle  Heats  and  soft  repeated  Rains, 

Make  the  green  Blood  to  dance  within  their  Veins. 


To  meet  the  Sun,  see !  youthful  Spring  appear, 
The  laughing  Fields,  new  Flowers  and  Verdure  wear, 
The  warb'ling  Birds  now  loftly  hover  round, 
While  silver  Fountains  murmur  to  their  Sound, 
Joy  spreads  the  Heart ;  and  with  a  general  Song 
Spring  issues  out,  and  leads  the  jolly  Months  along. 

JUNE. 

Now  the  Carnation,  and  the  bashful  Rose, 
Their  Virgin-blushes  to  the  Morn  disclose  : 
Now  the  chaste  Lilly  rises  to  the  Light, 
Unveils  her  snowy  Breast,  and  charms  the  Sight : 
And  Arbours  are  with  twining  Greens  array'd, 
T'  oblige  complaining  Lovers  with  their  Shade. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1755.  257 

JULY. 

The  Disk  of  Phoebus,  when  he  climbs  on  high, 

Appears  at  first  but  as  a  blood-shot  Eye  ; 

And  when  his  Chariot  downwards  drives  to  Bed, 

His  Ball  is  with  the  same  Suffusion  red ; 

But  mounted  high  in  his  meridian  Race, 

All  bright  he  shines,  and  with  a  better  grace. 

AUGUST. 

Dreams  are  but  Interludes  which  Fancy  makes  : 
When  Monarch  REASON  sleeps,  this  Mimic  wakes ; 
Compounds  a  Medley  of  disjointed  Things, 
A  Mob  of  Coblers,  and  a  Court  of  Kings : 
Light  Fumes  are  merry,  grosser  Fumes  are  sad, 
Both  are  the  reasonable  SOUL  run  mad  ; 

SEPTEMBER. 

And  many  monstrous  Forms  in  Sleep  we  see, 
That  never  were,  nor  are,  nor  e'er  can  be. 
Sometimes  forgotten  Things,  long  cast  behind, 
Rush  forward  in  the  Brain,  and  come  to  Mind : 
The  Nurses  Legends  are  for  Truths  receiv'd, 
And  the  Man  dreams  but  what  the  Boy  believ'd. 

OCTOBER. 

Seek  not  to  know  To-morrow's  Doom  ; 
That  is  not  our's  which  is  to  come  ! 
The  present  Moment's  all  our  Store, 
The  next  should  Heav'n  allow 
Then  this  will  be  no  more  : 
So  all  our  Life  is  but  one  Instant  Now. 

NOVEMBER. 

Religion's  foreign,  and  is  treated  so ; 

No  sooner  condescends  th'  ./Etherial  Dame 

To  visit  some  dark  Town  with  vital  Flame ; 

But  straitway  all  around  contrive 

To  hoot  the  heav'nly  Guest,  and  drive 

Her  Home  unto  the  Land  from  whence  she  came. 

DECEMBER. 

Who  'ere  presuni'd,  till  FRANKLIN  led  the  Way, 
To  climb  the  amazing  Highth  of  Heaven, 
And  rob  the  Sky  of  it's  tremendous  Thunder ; 


258  ALMANACK  FOR  1755. 

And  leave  the  Clouds,  with  Winds  and  Tempests  fraught, 
But  Breath  enough  to  shake  the  trembling  Trees, 
And  rock  the  Birds  that  pirch  upon  their  Boughs. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

How  easy  they  are  who  are  freest  of  care. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  Times  are  bad  because  Men's  Minds  are  so. 

MARCH. 

Innocence  is  not  always  a  Security  from  Punishment. 

Happy  would  be  the  Times  if  all  would  strive  to  mend  their  Lives. 

APRIIV. 

Many   complain   of  bad   Times,   but   take   no   care  to  become   better 
Themselves. 

A  good  Day  to  some,  but  ill  for  others. 

MAY. 

A  sudden  Combustion  after  a  long  Calm. 
Some  unexpected  Change 

D  T?  ?  A  21  § 

for  the  Best. 

JUNE. 
The  Fire  of  Contention  destroys  the  publick  Good. 

JULY. 

A  sudden  Disappointment  stops  the  Progress  of  a  grand  Tyrant. 
Good  Projections  without  Resolution  and  Action,  will  produce  no  good 
Effects. 

AUGUST. 
What's  spent  profusely,  might  pay  all  public  Charges. 

OCTOBER. 
An  idle  Man  is  a  Burden  to  himself,  to  his  Family,  and  to  the  Publick. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1755-  259 

NOVEMBER. 

An  honest  Friend  is  a  good  Companion. 
A  selfish  Spirit  ruins  the  Interest  of  the  Publick. 

DECEMBER. 

A  great  Sign  of  some  remarkable  Occurrence  in  War  or  Love,  about 
this  Time. 

The  Planet  Saturn  changes  Signs ;  the  Sky  changes  Winds,  and  many 
Men  change  their  Minds. 

Now  remarkable  Weather  in  some  sort,  and  many  strange  Accidents. 


The  Essay  on  Regimen  continued. 
Of   AIR. 

The  AIR  which  fills  our  raptur'd  Breasts  with  Joy,  supports 
all  Natures  Sons  with  Life,  without  whose  Energy  the  Blood  of 
Man  and  Beast  would  soon  become  a  drossy  Tide,  and  all  the 
Efforts  of  the  active  Heart,  would  be  unable  to  propell  the  pur 
ple  Currant  thro'  its  secret  mazy  Channels.  Sometimes  the 
Planets  dart  their  influence  down ;  or  from  the  Earth's  wide 
Womb  strange  Plagues  arise  and  contaminate  the  ^Etherial 
Tracts  of  Air,  which  stains  the  blue  Serenity  of  Heaven  with 
Death  in  various  Shapes. 

Breathe  not  the  Air  of  Cities,  where  breathless  Winds  imbibe 
Effluvia  from  the  Sick  and  Dying,  from  the  Dead,  from  Docks 
and  Dunghills ;  where  Thousands  of  Lungs  with  Exhalations 
foul,  sate  the  Air  with  strange  Corruption,  and  make  that  vital 
Element  a  nauseous  Mass,  enough  to  spoil  and  corrode  that  weak 
and  tender  Organ  thro'  whose  flexible  Tubes  the  putrid  Salts  of 
all  obscene  corrupt  offensive  Things  are  carried  to  the  Blood. 

You  who  would  breathe  in  pure  balsamic  Air,  see  yon  Blue- 
Hill  invites  you ;  where  western  Gales  from  Dedham  Plains  with 
sweet  ambrosial  Breezes  fan  the  undulating  Skie  and  chase 
those  Mists  which  cloud  his  lofty  summit ;  and  see  bewildered  l 
Charles  River  in  State  slowly  move  thro'  the  Town,  and  well 
deserves  her  notice  in  the  Charter. 


1  Bewildered,  because  in  Dedham  the  Flood  parts,  and  contrary  to 
the  common  Course  of  Nature,  a  considerable  Branch  runs  from  Charles 
River  and  joins  with  Neponsit  River. 


260  ALMANACK    FOR    1755- 

DIET. 

The  Food  which  from  the  briny  Ocean  is  taken,  and  made 
hard  with  the  Sun  and  Salt,  or  the  vetran  Ox,  so  smoak'd  and 
dried  that  Wood  is  scarcely  more  rebellious,  yet  this  the  arthletic 
labouring  Man  with  hungry  Meal  devours ;  his  assimilating 
Powers  are  so  amazing  strong  that  they  subtilize  the  stub 
born  Mass  to  Chyle,  which  nature  labours  into  Blood :  But 
those  whose  Fibres  are  unstrung,  the  infirm  and  delicate, 
those  pale  and  bloated  up  with  Sloth,  those  new  in  Life, 
and  those  who  bear  the  Weight  of  many  Years  ;  to  keep  your 
Bodies  free  of  Pain,  of  Woes  the  Mind,  reject  all  luscious  Food ; 
the  oily  Aliments  which  the  stal'd  and  cram'd  afford,  will  injure 
your  languid  Stomachs,  your  elastic  Tubes  are  not  sufficiently 
brac'd  and  the  Machinery  of  Nature  (in  you)  is  not  strong 
enough  to  grind  such  viscous  Fluids  fit  for  solid  Health ;  but 
rather  chuse  Meat  that  is  young  and  such  as  gain  their  Food 
with  Exercise  from  Grass,  from  Grain,  from  flowery  Herbs ; 
that  drink  the  Sun  and  Dews  from  Mountain's  Sides,  or  fertile 
Vales  :  When  first  the  Flowers  and  grateful  Herbs,  that  deck 
the  Spring  with  tender  Blade  and  sprouting  Life,  rise  from  their 
nitrous  Beds,  these  give  the  best  Repast,  a  sweet  Refection, 
their  balmy  Quintessences  restore  from  Languishments,  which 
all  the  long,  long  !  Winter  Nights  opprest. 

EXERCISE. 

The  Law  of  Nature  so  ordains,  Toil,  and  be  Strong :  The 
Husbandman  who  manures  the  Glebe,  and  toils  in  Dust  and 
Rain; — his  Habit  is  steel'd  with  Labour; — his  Nerves  grow 
firm  and  strong ;  thro'  midnight  Fogs  he  walks  unhurt,  nor  fears 
Rheumatic  Pains  or  Coughs  from  Eastern  Blasts.  Oh  !  happy 
would  it  be  for  many  Sons  of  Luxury,  if  they  no  Bread  might 
eat  but  what  they  earn'd  by  Labour.  When  Winter  chills  the 
Blood  and  binds  the  Veins,  your  Health  more  Labour  then 
demands.  How  Sweet  the  balmy  Dew  of  Sleep  descends  on  the 
labouring  Man  :  He  wastes  the  blank  of  Night  in  deep  Oblivion ; 
but  if  his  Memory  retains  what  roving  Fancy  coin'd,  the  little 
Cupids  court  his  Company  by  Night,  and  happy  Dreams  increase 
the  Tranquility  of  his  Mind,  and  he  awakes  as  lively  as  the 


ALMANACK    FOR    1755-  26l 

Morning  :  But  with  the  unactive  Sluggard  it  is  not  so  ;  his  flacid 
Nerves  are  unstrung,  his  Nature  sinks,  his  Meals  'oppress,  his 
Sleep  is  frantic  with  pale  Spectres,  coin'd  in  his  delirious  Brains ; 
and  monstrous  Painting  shocks  his  Soul  all  Night. 

'  Twas  Toil  that  taught  the  Romans  how  to  conquer ;  they 
from  the  Fields  went  to  the  Senate-House  ;  and  from  the  Plough 
they  led  their  Regions  on  to  War,  by  Toil  thro'  every  Clime 
they  gain'd  the  Victory.  —  Then  you  of  firmest  Clay,  New 
England's  hardiest  Sons,  let  Agriculture  exercise  your  Limbs. 
—You  with  the  Spirit  of  the  Romans,  conquer'd  Louisbourg  : 
Manure  this  Land  which  your  Fore-fathers  planted  with  Hercu 
lean  Labour  and  at  a  vast  Expence.  When  Dust  &  Sweat 
besmears  the  Skin,  thro'  whose  small  Pores  a  constant  Stream 
pervades — then  plunge  into  the  Flood,  or  in  the  Cistern  bathe — 
Your  Nerves  thus  tempered  as  with  treble  Steel,  no  chronick 
Languors  can  assault  your  Breast,  nor  Fever's  rapid  Flames 
scorch  up  your  Blood;  besides  'twill  keep  you  clean,  and  Nasti- 
ness  is  Poverty  indeed :  Youth  has  no  Grace  with  Filth, 
and  Charms  with  Dirt  are  loathsome. —  But  you  whose 
Health  is  fled,  whose  Strength  is  prostrate,  whose  feeble  Limbs 
the  Toil  of  Exercise  can't  bear,  nor  in  the  tepid  Flood  dare 
plunge  :  You,  Friction  with  the  Brush  may  use ;  such  Irritation 
on  the  porous  Skin  may  move  those  Bars  which  Perspiration 
feels,  and  make  the  Wheels  of  Life  (which  lag)  move  easier 
along. 


1755. — The  almanack  this  year  tends  largely  towards  poetry 
and  hygiene.  The  general  character  of  the  monthly  verses  does  not  differ 
much  in  sentiment  from  the  earlier  productions  of  the  author.  He  still 
continues  his  profound  admiration  for  the  wonderful  processes  of  Nature, 
and  his  lines  are  a  veritable  melange  of  moralizing,  devotion,  description, 
advice,  and  admiration ;  concluding  with  a  gloria  to  the  philosopher 
Franklin,  and  his  remarkable  attainments. 

His  essay  on  Regimen,  divided  into  chapters  on  Air,  Diet,  and  Exercise 
are  well  intended  for  the  consideration  of  his  auditors,  and  his  wit  and 
humor  combines  as  usual,  terse  sayings  concerning  economy  and  reform, 
which  now  appear  to  occupy  prominent  positions  in  the  public  mind. 


262  ALMANACK    FOR    1756. 

THE    ALMANACK    FOR    1756. 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 


BOSTON,  N.  E.,  Printed  by  J.  DRAPER  for  the  Booksellers. 


"  Presence  of  Mind,  and  Courage  in  Distress 
"  Are  more  than  Armies  to  procure  Success. 
"  True  Courage  dwells  not  in  a  troubled  Flood 
"  Of  mounting  Spirits  and  fermenting  Blood ; 
"  L/odg'd  in  the  Soul  with  Virtue  over-rul'd, 
"  Inflam'd  by  Reason,  and  by  Reason  cool'd ; 
"  In  Hours  of  Peace  content  to  be  unknown, 
"  And  only  in  the  Field  of  Battle  shown." 


JANUARY. 

Th'  Alarm's  beat,  the  Foe  approacheth  nigh, 
The  Noise  and  Shout  of  Soldiers  pierce  the  Skie, 
The  Drum's  and  Trumpet's  Sound  awake  the  Day, 
Come  WiNSiyOW  !  with  your  Mirmydons  away ; 
Your  Soldiers  are  like  their  great  Leaders  true : 
Success  and  Victory  bound  to  follow  you. 

FEBRUARY. 

For  brave  Men  force  Dame  Fortune  to  bestow 

Her  Gifts  on  them,  whether  she  will  or  no : 

You've  heard  the  Pagan's  fearful  warlike  Yell ; 

Their  Claron  sound  as  from  the  Jaws  of  Hell. 

This'  frightned  BRADDOCK'S  Soldiers  from  their  Master, 

And  wrought  alas  !  that  shameful  sad  Disaster  ; 

MARCH. 

Which  wou'd  to  Heav'n,  might  never  more  be  nani'd, 
As  'twas  thro'  France  *  and  Canada  proclaimed. 
O  may  that  Day !  that  fatal  Day  be  ras'd, 
Nor  in  Times  Calender  be  ever  plac'd ; 
July  the  ninth,  let  never  more  be  nam'd, 
Which  Britain's  bleeding  Glory  thus  has  stain'd. 

1  It  was  published  in  France  about  the  Time  it  happened. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1756.  263 


APRIL. 

Fate  fix'd  the  Doom  of  that  illustrious  Train 

Of  noble  Heroes,  most  ignobly  slain  ; 

Their  valiant  Souls  through  many  a  gaping  Wound 

L,eft  their  rich  Carcases  to  strow  the  Ground ; 

Th'  affright'ned  Field  a  dreadful  Carnage  swept 

From  skulking  Foes  who  under  Covert  crept : 

MAY. 

So  fares  the  Trav'ler  amongst  the  Brakes, 
Nigh  some  foul  Den  of  deadly  guileful  Snakes, 
From  his  stung  Heel  the  baneful  Venum  deep 
Into  his  Marrow  and  scorch'd  Entrails  creep, 
He  turns,  and  lo  his  skulking  Foe  he  spies 
When  all's  too  late,  for  seeing  Him  he  dies. 

JUNE. 

Thus  Shirley  too  by  savage  Hands  did  fall, 

His  Blood  for  Blood  incessantly  does  call : 

For  this  Defeat  which  thus  our  Honour  soils 

And  their  short  Joy  which  triumph'd  in  our  Spoils, 

May  our  just  Sword  a  plentious  Harvest  reap, 

And  Canada  one  endless  Fast  Day  keep. 

JULY. 

Shou'd  Sols  fierce  Beams  the  stragling  Streams  exhale, 
That  glide  along  the  fam'd  Monongahale^  ; 
May  Indian  Hearts  their  purple  Stores  let  go, 
And  make  that  Flood  its  'frightned  Banks  o'erflow : 
Times  rolling  Wheel  a  Revolution  brings, 
And  shifting  Scenes  attend  all  human  Things. 

AUGUST.     ' 

The  Canons  of  Eternal  Date  decree 

This  foul  Defeat  shall  full  revenged  be ; 

For  whilst  I  write,  the  Western  Post  come's  by, 

My  Muse  collects  the  Rumours  as  they  flie, 

I  just  have  heard  how  the  proud  Gallic  Pow'rs, 

Prostrate  themselves  before  the  leaden  Show'rs ; 


1  The  River  nigh  to  which  the  Battle  was  fought. 


264  ALMANACK  FOR  1756. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Which  our  Cromelians  with  just  Rage  possest 
Aim'd  sure  and  fatal  at  each  bleeding  Breast : 
How  like  the  Leaves  the  dying  Frenchmen  fall 
And  with  the  rest  their  haughty  General : 
Grief  chills  my  Veins,  my  Joy  is  almost  lost, 
To  think  what  Blood  this  Victory  has  cost. 

OCTOBER. 

A  hearty  Tear  each  mournful  Face  bedews, 
Trees  shed  their  Leaves,  Streams  murmur  at  the  News 
To  hear  how  TITCOMB,  and  brave  WII^IAMS  dy'd, 
"  Whilst  Victory  lay  bleeding  by  their  Side : 
Their  Warlike  Deeds,  their  lasting  Names  shall  save 
From  the  Oblivion  of  a  Tyrant  Grave. 

NOVEMBER. 

Behold  our  Camp!  from  Fear,  from  Vice  refin'd, 
Not  of  the  Filth,  but  Flower  of  human  Kind  ! 
Mother's  their  Sons,  Wives  lend  their  Husbands  there 
Brethren,  ye  have  our  Hearts,  our  Purse,  our  Prayer. 
The  happy  Bard  who  in  Heroic  Song 
Shall  paint  your  tedious  Marches  all  along ; 

DECEMBER. 

Tell  whom  you  slew,  what  wonders  you  have  done, 
How  you  have  fought,  and  God-like  Honor  won, 
With  heav'nly  Lawrels  of  eternal  Fame, 
Reports  the  Merits  of  each  worthy  Name ; 
And  justly  tell  what  Praises  are  your  due, 
Shall  gain  himself  immortal  Honor  too. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

What's  now  projected,  ought  not  to  be  neglected. 

Chuse  thy  Wife  rather  for  her  Wit  and  Modesty,  than  for  her  Wealth  & 
Beauty. 

He  that  can't  feel  the  cold  now,  is  certainly  benumb'd. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  Ambition  of  great  Men,  impoverishes  and  destroys  a  Nation. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1756.  265 

When  adverse  Planets  scowl,  and  press  th'  etherial  Plains : 
The  secret  touch  by  Man's  confess'd  in  his  disturbed  Brains. 

MARCH. 

Now  Celsus  has  to  do,  with  Quinseys,  Pleurisies  and  Cholicks  too. 
The  falling  Snow  and  Rain,  mix'd  with  the  Mire, 
now  makes  the  Travelers  meagre  Horses  tire. 


Many  Remarkables  happen  about  this  Time. 
A  strange  Affair,  which  makes  some  People  stare ! 
News,  more  strange  than  true. 

More  is  lost  by  Imprudence,  than  can  be  re-gain'd  by  Contrivance. 
Cold  eastern  Gales,  and  Sun  obstructing  Clouds,  keep  back  the  approach 
of  Spring. 

MAY. 

A  mighty  Stir  to  no  purpose. 

A  great  many  remarkable  violent  Accidents. 

Now  where  there's  War  they  fall  to  Blows. 

JUNE- 

Now  Agues  chill,  and  melancholy  Care, 

possess  some  weakned  Minds  with  black  Dispair. 

JULY. 

Now  the  bite  of  a  Rattle-Snake  is  bad,  but  the  Envy  of  a  bad  Nei'bour 
is  worse. 

AUGUST. 

If  it  Rains  not  now  great  signs  fail. 

A  prospect  of  a  plentiful  Year  in  some  Places,  in  others  Desolation,  by 
War  &  Drougt. 

Unwholesome  Gales,  contagious  Auster  blows. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Now  Rain,  or  else,  a  Frost, 
or  else,  alas !  my  Guess  is  lost. 

Excess  of  Drink,  burns  up  Beauty,  hastens  Age,  makes  a  man  a  Beast,  a 
strong  Man  weak,  and  a  wise  Man  a  Fool. 

OCTOBER. 

Strange  !  now  the  Planets  do  excite 
Contending  Foes  t'  engage  in  Fight. 
Some  strange  Events  happen  very  unexpectedly. 


266  ALMANACK  FOR  1756. 

NOVEMBER. 

Now  many  an  aching  Bone  prognosticates  that  Winter's  coming  on. 

DECEMBER. 

Pain's  our  Inheritance  ;  Pleasure  is  lent  to  a  Man  upon  hard  Usury. 
Now  Sol  in  Capricorn  appoints 
Fierce  Rheumatism  to  rack  the  Joynts. 


An  Account  of  the  several  Provinces  in  North- America. 

This  Continent  was  first  discovered  by  Christopher  Columbus, 
a  Genoese,  A.D.  1492,  in  the  Spanish  Service;  and  is  called  America 
from  Americus  Vespucius,  a  Florentine  Merchant,  employ 'd  by 
the  Portugese,  A.D.  1499,  about  the  same  Time  the  Cabbots  were 
imployed  by  the  English,  and  Veruzani  by  the  French,  in  Voyages 
to  this  new  World :  The  British  Empire  in  North-America 
extends  it's  self  about  1600  Miles  Sea-Coast,  from  Nova-Scotia, 
South  Westward  to  Georgia,  including  13  Provinces,  Colonies, 
or  distinct  Governments,  subject  to  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain; 
each  of  which  I  shall  just  mention  :  And, 

i.  Of  Nova  Scotia  :  At  the  Conclusion  of  Queen  Ann's  War, 
1713,  at  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht,  Nova-Scotia  was  ceded  to  Great- 
Britain,  there  were  two  or  three  Thousand  French  at  that  Time, 
who  were  suffered  to  continue  on  the  L,ands  they  had  settled, 
and  undoubtedly  became  the  Subjects  of  Great- Britain:  They 
call  themselves  Neutrals^  but  are  Rebels  and  Traytors,  assisting 
the  French  and  Indians  at  all  Opportunities,  to  murder  &  cut  our 
Throats  :  They  are  increased  to  7  or  8000 :  The  brave  Monckton 
&  Winslow,  with  an  Arm}7,  chiefly  from  New  England,  in  remov 
ing  those  perfidious  Neighbours,1  have  brightned  the  first  of  our 
Expeditions  against  the  French  this  Year,  with  Success.  Some 
say,  that  Nova  Scotia  for  Healthiness  of  Climate,  and  Richness 
of  soil,  exceed  the  other  Governments.  Its  produce  is  Hemp, 
Flax,  Timber,  Coals,  Furs  and  Skins,  and  contains  the  most 
profitable  Fisheries  in  the  World;  there  are  5000  Inhabitants; 
it's  present  Governor  is  his  Excellency  Charles  Lawrence,  Esq; 

1  This  refers  to  the  banishment  of  the  Acadians  in  1755. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1756.  267 

2.  New-Hampshire  is  the  next  Government  on  the  Continent, 
which  with  the  Massachusetts,  Rhode-Island  and  Connecticut,  bear 
the  general   Appellation  of  New-England.     This  Government 
produces  Masts  for  the  Royal  Navy,  and  Lumber  of  all  sorts  ; 
contains  30,000  Inhabitants ;  It's  present  Governor  is  his  Excel 
lency  Benning  Wentworth,  Ksq ; 

3.  We  come  now  to  the  Massachusetts-Bay;  This  Province 
may  be  said  to  give  Peace  to  Europe  ;  since  for  Cape  Breton  the 
French  yielded  all  their  Conquests  in  Flanders.     Boston  is  the 
Metropolis  of  North-America  :   The  Air  clear  and  healthy ;  the 
soil  in  some  Parts  very  good,  producing  Rye,  Oats,  Barley  and 
Indian  Corn,  in  great  Plenty,  excellent  Pasture  Land,  and  plenty 
of  Provisions.     Our  Cod-Fish  we  Trade  off  to  Spain,  Portugal, 
Italy,  &c.     Our  Whale-Fishery  and  Ship  Building  is  great  &c. 
&c.   &c.     The   Number   of   our   Inhabitants   is   computed   at 
220,000,    Our  Governor  is  his  Excellency  William  Shirley,  Esq; 

4.  Rhode-Island  is  the  next  in  Course  ;  a  small  Colony,  New 
port  in  Rhode- Is  land  is  the  Capital  Town,  Providence  is  the  next 
considerable  Town,  and  increases  very  fast  in  Trade,  in  Building, 
and  in  Inhabitants.     Their  Air  and  Soil  differ  not  much  from 
the  Massachusetts,  and  contains  about  35,000  Inhabitants;    their 
Governor  this  Year  is  the  Hon.  Stephen  Hopkins,  Esq ; 

5.  In  our  Course  a  little  to  the  Westward,  lies   Connecticut 
Colony,  a  good  Air,  a  rich  Soil,  greatly  abounding  in  all  sorts  of 
Provisions,  many  fine  Towns  along  the  Sea-Coast,  and  on  the 
River,  which  bears  the  Name  of   their  Colony.      They  are  a 
religious,  virtuous  People,  and  have  greatly  distinguished  them 
selves  in  the  present  Expedition  against   Crown  Point ;   their 
Number  of  Inhabitants  100,000,  and  Governor  this  Year,  is  the 
Hon.  Thomas  Fitch,  Esq  ; 

6.  The  next  Government  is  New-York ;    the  City  of  New- 
York  is  their  Capital ;  and  is  said  to  contain  5000  Houses,  they 
abound  in   all  Sorts  of  Provisions,  which  they  export,  and  in 
Return  bring  the  best  Madeira,  which  by  the  better  sort  is  drank 
freely  in  the  City ;    the  Number  of  their  Inhabitants  is  set  at 
100,000,  and  their  present  Governor  is  His  Excellency  Sir  Charles 
Hardy,  Knight. 

7.  The  next  Government  is  New-Jersey ;  a  level  Country, 
and  Plenty  of  Provisions;  not  much  Foreign  Trade.    Many  good 


268  ALMANACK  FOR  1756. 

Towns,  and  contains  about  60,000  Inhabitants ;  their  present 
Governor  is  His  Excellency  Jonathan  Belcher,  Ksq ; 

8.  Pennsylvania  ;  the  most  populous  of  all  the  Governments 
in  North  America  ;  Philadelphia  is  the  capital  and  finest  City  on 
the  Continent ;  their  Houses  are  well  built,  their  Streets  regular; 
their  Town  Hotise  elegant :  Their  Market  abounds  with  every 
Thing,  they  tolerate  all  Religions,  and  trade  to  all  Parts,  and 
have  250,000  Inhabitants,  their  Governor  is  the  Hon.   Robert 
Hunter  Morris,  Esq ; 

9.  The  next  Colony  is  Maryland :  A  fruitful  Soil,  they  raise 
Wheat,  Indian  Corn,  and  Tobacco  in  plenty,  Cattle  and  Hogs. 
The  Transports  from   Tyburn,  plague  them  worse  than  Rattle 
snakes,   who  are  Natives  of   the   Country;    they   have   85,000 
Inhabitants  ;  their  present  Governor  is  the  Hon.  Horatio  Sharpe, 
Esq; 

10.  Virginia  is  next ;  named  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  after 
the  Virgin  Queen  Elizabeth  ;  'tis  the  most  ancient  Settlement : 

Williamsburg  is  the  Capital  Town,  Lat.  37.  Deg.  N.  not  so  cold ; 
the  People  live  in  ease  and  plenty :  Tobacco  is  their  chief  Com 
modity,  wrhich  brings  a  great  Revenue  to  the  Crown.  Virginia 
has  1 80  Miles  Sea  Coast;  &  its  now  well  known  our  disputed 
Claim  with  the  French,  extends  back  in  the  Country  unbounded, 
and  is  wonderfully  supplied  with  fine  navigable  Rivers ;  contains 
85,000  Inhabitants,  their  present  Governor  is  the  Hon.  Robert 
Dimviddie,  Esq ; 

11.  North-Carolina;    Lat.   35  Deg.    N.   is  fruitful  in   Rice, 
Indian  Corn,  Tobacco,  Pitch,  Tar,  Deer  skins,  Fur,  Wax,  Tallow, 
&c.     Hot  in  Summer,  and  not  very  cold  in  Winter ;  their  Cattle 
and   Hogs  are   fed   and   fatted   by   indulgent   Nature,    without 
Expence  to  the  Farmer :  Their  chief  Places  are   Cape  Fare  and 
Edentown ;    their  Number  of   Inhabitants  45,000,  their  present 
Governor  is  the  Hon.  Arthur  Dobbs,  Esq  ; 

12.  South- Carolina  ;  in  32  Deg.  N.  Lat.  has  the  same  Produce 
as  North-Carolina;    they  have  little  Winter,  and  have  all  the 
Conveniences  of   Life;    also  fine   Rivers  and  good  Harbours; 
Charlestown  is   their   Capital :    Number  of   Inhabitants   about 
30,000,  their  present  Governor  is  His  Excellency  William  Little 
ton,  Esq  ; 

13.  Georgia,   the   last   and    Frontier    Colony   against    the 


ALMANACK  FOR  1756.  269 

Spaniards,  lies  in  Lat.  29  or  30  Deg.  is  very  hot  and  not  so  rich  a 
Soil  as  the  other  Colonies :  they  abouud  in  Mulberry  Trees,  the 
Silk-Worm's  proper  Food,  and  some  Silk  has  been  made  there. 
Georgia  contains  6000  Inhabitants,  arid  the  Hon.  John  Reynolds, 
Ksq  ;  is  their  present  Governor. 

Upon  the  whole,  The  southern  Colonies  live  with  the  least 
Labour ;  but  the  Northern  Colonies  are  most  Healthy  ;  and  the 
Breed  and  Disposition  of  the  New-England  People,  are  the  most 
stout  and  warlike,  and  deserve  the  Preference  in  Military  Affairs. 


OH  1756. — The  patriotism  and  military  ardor  of  the  Author 
no  where  shines  forth  to  any  better  advantage  than  in  his  verses  the 
present  year.  Seventeen  hundred  and  fifty-five,  it  will  be  remembered 
was  a  bloody  period  for  the  frontier  colonists.  The  French  with  their 
Indian  allies  were  making  desperate  efforts  to  cut  off  the  advancing  strides 
of  British  colonization,  by  the  establishment  of  a  chain  of  outposts  or 
forts,  between  the  Great  Lakes  and  the  Mississippi  Valley. 

This  war  embraced  the  fateful  Braddock  campaign,  and  heralded  the 
advent  of  a  Washington.  The  Doctor's  lines  are  full  of  spirit,  and  each 
syllable  is  impued  with  not  only  patriotic  fire  and  loyalty,  but  also  with 
an  implacable  belief  in  the  lex  talionis  of  the  old  dispensation. 

He  embalms  in  his  poetic  strains  the  memories  of  almost  forgotten 
heroes — Winslow,  Shirley,  Titcomb,  Williams — execrates  the  French  and 
Canada,  and  with  a  pen  dipped  in  gall,  bemoans  the  employment  of  mer 
cenary  savages,  as  allies  in  a  combat  between  Christian  nations. 

A  very  interesting  geographical  description  "  of  the  several  Provinces 
in  North  America  "  concludes  this  year's  pamphlet,  and  will  possess  con 
siderable  attraction  for  the  reader ;  conveying  to  his  mind  forcibly  and 
briefly  the  condition  of  the  colonies  at  that  period,  and  from  which 
sprang  this  great  Nation  of  Republics. 

NOTE. — The  compiler  inserts  the  following,  with  an  extract  from  a 
contemporary  almanack,  as  being  of  possible  interest  in  connection  with 
Dr.  Ames'  production. 

In  the  last  paragraph  of  the  geographical  description,  it  will  be 
observed  that  Dr.  Ames  takes  occasion  to  comment  upon  the  comparative 
military  efficiency  of  the  two  sections  of  the  now  American  Union,  by 
which  it  would  seem  that  there  were  opinions  upon  this  subject  even  at 
that  early  period. 

Mr.  C.  MORE,  in  his  Almanack  1757,  published  at  New  York,  makes  use 
of  the  entire  article  written  by  Dr.  Ames  (and  here  printed,)  concerning 
the  "  Provinces  in  North  America,"  but  forbears  any  allusion  to  the 
"  Preference  in  Military  Affairs."  Mr.  More  does,  however,  amplify  the 


270  ALMANACK  FOR  1756. 

subject  in  the  manner  following,  and  also  touches  up  several  matters  con 
nected  with  the  "  French  and  Indian  War,"  which  bear  evidence  that  the 
"  Army  "  and  the  "  Government,"  had  some  critics  equally  as  watchful  as 
any  who  supervised  the  "  War  between  the  States." 

"  Besides  these  13  Colonies,  the  English  are  in  the  rightful  Possession  of 
Newfoundland,  but  there  are  but  few  Settlements  on  it,  and  those  chiefly 
for  carrying  on  the  Cod-Fishery ;  which  is  great. 

These  13  Colonies  form  an  Extent  on  the  Sea-Coast  of  near  1800  Miles, 
but  no  where  reaching  300  Miles  back ;  whilst  the  French  surround  us  as 
it  were  in  a  Bow,  from  Cape  Breton,  at  the  Mouth  of  St.  Lawrence  River, 
to  the  Mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  forming  a  Chain  of  about  3000  miles. 
The  French  have  continually  been  encroaching  on  the  Lands  claimed  by 
the  English  on  this  Continent;  and  in  the  Year  1754,  the  Government  of 
Virginia  being  too  sensible  of  it,  sent  Col.  Washington  to  treat  with  them 
about  their  Encroachments  on  the  Ohio  ;  but  the  then  French  Command 
ant  M.  St.  Pierre,  told  him  he  knew  it  must  come  to  Blows,  and  he  did  not 
care  how  soon.  A  while  after  Col.  Washington  was  sent  with  an  armed 
Force,  to  fortify  a  Place  since  called  Fort  Du  Quesnc,  on  the  Ohio  River,  in 
order  to  dispossess  the  French ;  but  he  was  set  upon  by  the  French  and 
Indians  the  3d  Day  of  July  1754,  entirely  defeated,  and  his  Cannon  all  lost. 

This  seemed  to  awaken  the  Court  of  Great  Britain,  who  early  the  next 
Spring,  sent  over  General  Braddock,  with  a  Body  of  Forces  and  Artillery 
sufficient  to  dislodge  the  French  :  They  arrived  at  Virginia  on  the  ist  of 
March,  1755.  The  same  Spring  Orders  were  given  for  raising  Forces  for 
an  Expedition  against  Crown-point,  to  consist  of  upwards  of  2000  Provin 
cials,  under  the  Command  of  Gen.Jo/mson.  And  the  two  Regiments  of 
Shirley  and  Pepper rell  were  to  be  completed,  in  order  to  make  an  Attempt 
at  the  same  Time  on  Niagara.  The  first  of  these  Orders  were  given  in 
Connecticut  the  first  of  January,  and  by  the  beginning  of  May  the  chief  of 
the  Men  were  raised.  Gen.  Braddock  sent  for  Gen.  Shirley  to  meet  him 
at  Annapolis  in  Maryland,  the  beginning  of  April,  but  after  waiting  there 
9  Days  for  him  in  vain,  he  set  out  on  his  Way  to  the  Frontiers  ;  and  G.  S. 
not  coming  till  some  Days  after,  was  obliged  to  follow  him  a  considerable 
Distance  :  By  these  Delays,  and  a  continued  Series  of  others  as  unaccount 
able,  Gen.  Braddock  could  not  proceed  till  the  Beginning  of  July,  when, 
on  the  Qth  Day  being  got  within  13  miles  of  the  Fort  Du  Quesne,  he  was 
suddenly  attack'd  by  the  French  in  Ambush,  when  he  was  entirely 
defeated,  his  Cannon  taken,  upwards  of  600  of  his  Men  and  Officers  killed, 
and  himself  mortally  wounded,  so  that  he  died  two  Days  after :  In  this 
Battle  G.  S.  lost  a  Son.  Gen.  S.  was  to  have  attack'd  Niagara  at  the  same 
Time,  but  he  had  not  got  so  far  on  the  way  as  Albany  then  :  The  Provincial 
Forces  were  also  to  have  been  against  Croivn-point,  but  these  last  contin 
ued  loitering  near  Albany  till  Sickness,  Idleness  and  Dissatisfaction 
increased  much  among  them.  On  the  first  Day  of  September,  they  how 
ever  got  to  the  Banks  of  Lake  Sacrament,  now  called  Lake  George,  where 


ALMANACK    FOR    1756.  271 

after  lying  eight  Days,  they  were  attacked  by  the  French  General  Baron 
Dieskau,  with  a  body  of  Regulars,  Canadians  and  Indians,  (as  if  to  chide 
them  for  their  long  Delays.)  However,  here  they  happened  to  catch  a 
Tartar;  for  the  English  once  more  resumed  their  natural  Disposition,  and 
not  only  bravely  repulsed  the  Enemy,  but  entirely  routed  them,  taking 
their  General  Prisoner,  and  killing  upward  of  700  Men,  being  great  Part  of 
their  Army  :  And  M.  St.  Pierre,  who  defeated  G.  Braddock  the  gth  vt  July, 
having  travell'd  above  900  miles  by  Land  and  Water,  to  assist  the  Baron 
Dieskau,  lost  his  Life  in  this  Engagement.  But  the  English  delaying  to 
follow  their  Blow,  the  scattered  Remains  of  the  French  escaped,  and  got 
safe  back.  The  Noise  of  this  Attack  alarm'd  the  whole  Country,  and 
several  Thousands  poured  in  to  their  Assistance  ;  and  it  is  conjectured  had 
they  followed  their  Stroke,  while  the  French  were  under  their  Panic, 
Crown-point  must  in  all  Probability  have  fell  into  our  Hands,  if  not  all 
Canada.  But  a  Cry  of  Want  of  Provisions  was  pleaded  in  Excuse;  tho' 
they  had  had  all  the  Summer  to  provide  them  in  ;  and  whose  Fault  it  was, 
that  they  were  not  provided,  tho'  worthy  the  Enquiry  of  the  respective 
Legislatures,  is  hard  at  his  Time  to  say; 

Gen.  S.,  arrived  at  Osivego  the  i8th  August,  in  order  to  go  against 
Niagara  ;  but  waiting  till  the  2yth  of  Sept.  it  was  then  found  out  to  be 
too  late  for  Action  that  Season  ;  Whereupon  a  new  and  larger  Fortification 
was  set  about  at  Oswego,  and  all  the  Army  ordered  into  Winter-Quarters. 

This  Winter  a  grand  Congress  was  held  at  New  York,  and  a  Plan  of 
Operations  agreed  upon  :  In  pursuance  of  which  a  numerous  Army  was 
provided  by  the  several  Colonies  concerned,  to  be  commanded  by  Gen. 
Winslow,  who  had  so  expeditiously  taken  the  French  Fort  Beausejour 
in  Nova-Scotia,  as  mentioned  under  the  Description  of  that  Place  ;  and 
Gen.  S.  upon  whom  the  chief  Command  in  America  devolved  on  the  Death 
of  Gen.  Braddock,  provided  a  great  number  of  Battoes  and  Battoemen, 
to  carry  Provision  and  Stores  to  Oswego  ;  as  also  Carpenters  and  Smiths, 
to  build  a  Naval  Force  on  the  Lake  Ontario,  in  order  to  defend  that  Place 
and  assist  in  the  Attack  of  Niagara.  Great  Quantity  of  Provisions  and 
warlike  Stores  were  accordingly  carried  and  lodged  there ;  two  or  three 
stout  Vessels  of  War  built,  and  other  Preparations  made ;  but  no  more 
Men  sent  there  than  about  1000  of  the  King's  Forces,  under  Lieut.  Col. 
Mercer,  and  300  of  the  Jersey  Troops,  under  the  worthy  Col.  Schuyler. 
In  the  Spring  we  had  frequent  Alarms  of  the  French  taking  the  Fort  at 
Oswego,  but  all  false. 

June*],  1756,  Col.  Webb  arrived  at  New-York,  and  the  i6th  following 
arrived  Gen.  Abercrombie,  with  two  more  Regiments  of  Soldiers,  and 
Lord  Loudoun,  being  appointed  Generallissimo,  daily  expected :— As  Gen. 
Abercrombie  took  Place  of  Gen.  .S.  the  latter  thereupon  left  Albany:— 
The  2$djuiy  the  Lord  Loudoun  arrived  at  N.  York:  and  three  Days  after 
embarked  for  Albany :  The  Beginning  of  Sept.  continual  Advices  came 
of  Oswego's  being  attacked  and  taken  by  a  large  Body  of  French  and 


272  ALMANACK  FOR  1756. 

Indians ;  but  so  various,  that  nothing  certain  could  be  depended  on  for 
some  Time  :  At  last  Scouts  being  sent  out,  the  Fort  was  found  demolished, 
and  every  Thing  carried  off;  and  the  Beginning  of  October,  several  Letters 
were  found  from  the  English  Prisoners  at  Montreal,  dated  Aug.  30,  1756, 
giving  Intelligence  that  the  Garrison  of  Oswego  were  made  Prisoners  of 
War  to  the  French,  the  i/jih  of  Aug.  with  the  Loss  only  of  Col.  Mercer, 
and  13  others. 

At  this  Time  the  English  had  5  Ships  of  Force  built  at  Oswego,  all  well 
rigged,  with  Cannon  on  board,  which  all  fell  into  the  Hands  of  the  French, 
and  a  Year's  Provision  for  more  than  2000  Men,  besides  Arms  and  Ammu 
nition,  the  most  agreeable  Things  the  French  could  have.  And  thus  fell 
Oswego ;  but  whether  by  Cowardice  or  Treachery,  no  one  can  yet  deter 
mine. 

Every  sensible  Person  knows  the  River  St.  Lawrence  is  hardly  ever 
navigable  till  the  beginning  of  May,  and  that  the  Freshes  in  the  Spring 
in  the  River  Ohio,  will  very  much  retard  the  French  from  coming  up  that 
River  till  the  End  of  April ;  and  the  great  Length  of  both  those  Rivers 
must  always  hinder  the  French  from  relieving  their  Settlements  from 
France  till  some  time  in  May :  And  we  all  know,  that  the  Baron  Dieskau, 
who  attacked  Gen.  Johnson  the  8th  of  Sept.  left  Old  France  the  End  of 
April  only.  From  whence  it  must  appear  that  if  Gen.  6".  had  proceeded 
to  attack  Niagara  in  May,  and  Gen.  Braddock  to  attack  Fort  Du  Quesne  at 
the  same  Time,  as  they  might  have  done,  had  they  acted  with,  as  much  as 
they  made  Use  of  the  Word  Expedition,  in  all  Probability  1000  Men  would 
have  been  more  effectual  than  all  the  Force  they  afterwards  could  produce  ; 
The  same  Instant  if  the  Provincials  had  gone  against  Crown-Point,  the 
French  had  there  by  all  Accounts  not  more  than  500  Men  to  oppose  that 
Way ;  and  as  Gen.  Winslow  at  the  same  Time  attack'd  and  took  Fort 
Beausejour ;  it  is  plain,  the  Success  was  scarce  doubtful;  But  by  the 
unhappy,  if  not  unaccountable  Delays,  all  those  Advantages  have  been 
lost,  and  the  French  have  now  attack'd  us  four  Times  on  our  own  Ground, 
whilst  we  have  only  made  a  Bluster,  and  never  attempted  or  even  marched 
on  to  their  Lands  at  any  Place,  except  at  Beausejour  aforesaid. 

One  would  have  thought,  that  the  English  seeing  the  fatal  Consequence 
of  such  Delays  in  1755,  and  having  all  Winter  before  them  to  provide  in, 
would  be  early  enough  the  next  Year :  But  alas !  the  French  have  had 
Time  to  come  from  Old  France :  (for  they  had  had  their  Force  broke  the 
Year  before)  march  3  or  400  Miles,  land  Cannon,  attack  and  take  Oswego, 
and  get  back  to  Crown-Point  ready  to  receive  us,  before  we  have  began  to 
march  :  What  fatal  Legarthy  this  !  and  how  consistent  with  our  Boasting, 
is  nor  for  me  to  say :  Tho'  some  have  objected  that  there  is  a  great  Differ 
ence  between  talking  and  doing :  This  is  allowed ;  but  cannot  we  undergo 
the  same  Difficulties,  and  do  as  well  as  the  French  ?  or  are  we  only  to  talk, 
and  they  to  do  ?  O  tell  it  not  in  Quebeck,  publish  it  not  in  the  Streets  of 
Montreal,  lest  the  Daughters  of  the  popish  Nunneries  rejoice,  and  the 


ALMANACK  FOR  1756.  273 

free-born  Sons  of  Britain,  be  had  in  Derision  by  the  Slaves  of  haiighty 
Louis.  Oh!  China!  thou  hast  enervated  old  Britain's  Sons  with  thy  per 
nicious  Drug  Tea  ;  and  by  diluting  our  Hearts,  made  us  become  like  thy 
own  Race  of  effeminate  Asiaticks. 

Were  there  room  here  something  should  be  added  of  the  additional 
great  and  fatal  Loss  of  Minorca,  by  the  inglorious  Conduct  of  Admiral 
Byng  ;  but  whether  that,  with  the  Loss  of  Oswego,  is  owing  to  Treachery 
or  not,  Time  only  must  discover. — The  following  Sentiments  of  the  In 
habitants  of  the  City  of  Bristol,  in  an  Address  to  our  most  gracious  Sover 
eign,  the  Qth  of  September,  1756,  upon  this  Occasion,  is  thought  worthy 
the  Regard  of  every  Englishman,  viz. 

4  There  is  nothing  so  reasonable,  or  so  just,  as  the  desire  universally 
expressed  by  the  nation,  that  a  clear  and  full  account  may  be  obtained,  of 
the  immense  supplies  given  by  their  representatives  in,  and  raised  upon 
the  people,  since  the  last  sessions  of  parliament.  The  motives  on  which, 
and  the  ends  for  which,  those  vast  sums,  in  our  present  circumstances 
especially,  were  so  readily  voted,  and  so  chearfully  paid,  were  sufficiently 
divulged,  and  therefore  the  manner  in  which  they  have  been  applied, 
ought  to  be  no  secret.  The  Arcana  Imperil  are  well  suited  to  despotick 
governments,  but  are  inconsistent  with,  and  dangerous  to,  the  liberties  of 
a  free  people.  Besides  it  is  no  way  reconcileable  to  the  nature  of  our 
constitution,  which  is  founded  on  reason  and  equity,  the  liberty  of  the 
subjects  persons,  and  the  security  of  their  properties. — they  add, — we  have 
attempted  nothing." 

Humor  and  wisdom  this  year  are  but  sparsely  distributed  in  the  alman 
ack  ;  the  author  being  more  intent  upon  patriotism,  war,  aggrandizement 
of  the  British  nation,  and  the  downfall  of  the  sons  of  St.  Louis. 


274  ALMANACK    FOR    1757- 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1757 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 


BOSTON ;  NEW  ENGLAND  :  Printed  by 
J.  DRAPER,  for  the  BooKSEU^ERS. 


MINORCA'S  gone  !  OSWEGO  too  is  lost ! 
Review  the  Cause ;  or  BRITAIN  pays  the  Cost : 
These  sad  Events  have  silenced  my  Muse, 
The  Prince  of  Day*  eclipses  at  the  News, 
And  Comett  soon  will  blaze  along  the  Skie, 
Portending  (sure)  some  dire  Event  is  nigh  ; 
I  dare  not  speak !  May  Shame  and  Blushes  tell, 
What  we've  not  done,  and  what  hath  us  befell ! 

*See  the  Eclipse  in  the  next  Page.     (An  Annular  Eclipse  of  the  Sun.) 
t  The  N.  B.     (A  COMET  expected  the  latter  End  of  this  Year  or  the 
Beginning  of  the  Year  1758.) 


JANUARY. 

Few  People  know  it;  yet  dear  SIR,  'tis  true 
Men  should  have  somewhat  evermore  to  do. 
Hard  Labor's  tedious  Every  one  must  own, 
But  surely  better  such  by  far  than  none. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  perfect  Drone,  the  quite  Impertinent, 
Whose  Life  at  nothing  aims,  but  —  to  be  spent 
Such  Heaven  visits  for  some  mighty  111 ; 
'Tis  sure  the  hardest  Labour  to  sit  still. 
Hence  that  unhappy  Tribe  who  Nought  pursue 
Who  sin  for  want  of  something  else  to  do. 

MARCH. 

Sir  JOHN  is  bless'd,  with  Riches,  Honour,  Love ; 
And  to  be  bless'd,  indeed,  needs  only  move ; 
For  want  of  this,  with  Pain  he  lives  away, 
A  Lump  of  hardly  animated  Clay. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1757.  275 

APRIL. 

Dull  till  his  double  Bottle  does  him  right ; 
He's  easy,  just  at  Twelve  o'Clock  at  Night: 
Thus  for  one  sparkling  Hour  alone  he's  blest ; 
Whilst  Spleen  and  Head-ach  seize  on  all  the  rest. 


What  Numbers  Sloth  with  gloomy  Humours  fills, 
Racking  their  Brains  with  visionary  Ills? 
Hence  what  loud  Outcries,  and  well-meaning  Rage, 
What  endless  Quarrels  at  the  present  Age  ! 

JUNE. 

How  many  Blame  !  How  often  may  we  hear, 

"  Such  Vice ! — Well,  sure,  the  last  Day  must  be  near!" 

T'  avoid  such,  wild,  imaginary  Pains, 

The  sad  Creation  of  distemper'd  Brains. 

JULY. 

Dispatch,  dear  Friend  !  move,  labour,  sweat,  run,  fly 
Do  aught — but  think  the  Day  of  Judgment  nigh, 
There  are,  who've  lost  all  Relish  for  Delight ; 
With  them  no  earthly  Thing  is  ever  right. 

AUGUST. 

T'  expect  to  alter  to  their  Taste  were  vain ; 

For  who  can  mend  so  fast,  as  they  complain  ? 

Whate'er  you  do,  shall  be  a  Crime  with  such  ; 

One  while  you've  lost  your  Tongue,  then  talk  too  much. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Thus  shall  you  meet  their  waspish  Censure  still ; 
As  Hedge-Hogs  prick  you,  go  which  Side  you  will. 
Oh!  pity  these,  whene'er  you  see  them  swell ! 
Folks  call  them  cross — Poor  Men  !  they  are  not  well. 

OCTOBER. 

How  many  such,  in  Indolence  grown  old, 
With  Vigour  ne'er  do  any  Thing  but  scold  ? 
Whose  Spirits  only  from  ill  Humour  get ; 
Ivike  Wines  that  die,  unless  upon  the  Fret. 

NOVEMBER. 

Weary'd  of  flouncing  to  himself  alone, 
ACERBUS  keeps  a  Man  to  fret  upon  ; 


276  ALMANACK  FOR  1757. 

The  Fellow's  nothing  in  the  Earth  to  do 
But  to  sit  quiet  and  be  scolded  to ; 

DECEMBER. 

Pishes  and  Oaths,  whene'er  the  Master's  sour'd, 
All  largely  on  the  Scape-goat  Slave  are  pour'd. 
This  drains  his  Rage  :  and  tho'  to  JOHN  so  rough, 
Abroad  you'd  think  him  Complaisant  enough. 

As  for  myself  whom  Poverty  prevents, 

From  being  angry  at  so  great  Expence ; 

Who,  should  I  ever  be  inclin'd  to  rage, 

For  want  of  Slaves,  War  with  myself  must  wage. 

Must  rail,  and  hear,  chastizing  be  chastiz'd, 

Be  both  the  Tyrant,  and  the  Tyranniz'd : 

I  choose  to  Labour,  rather  than  to  fret ; 

What's  Rage  in  some,  in  me  goes  off  in  Sweat, 

If  times  are  ill,  and  Things  seem  never  worse ; 

Men,  Manners  to  reclaim, — I,  take  my  Horse : 

One  Mile  reforms  'em  ;  or  if  ought  remain 

Unpurg'd — 'tis  but  to  ride  as  far  again. 

Thus  on  myself  in  Toils  I  spend  my  Rage 

I  pay  the  Fine,  and  that  absolves  the  Age. 

Sometimes,  still  more,  to  interrupt  my  Ease 

I  take  my  Pen,  and  write  such  Things  as  these ; 

Which  tho'  all  other  Merit  be  deny'd, 

Shew  my  Devotion  still  to  be  employ'd : 

Add  too ;  tho'  writing  be  itself  a  curse, 

Yet  some  Distempers  are  a  Cure  for  worse. 

And  since  mid'st  Indolence,  Spleen  will  prevail, 

Since  who  do  nothing  else,  are  sure  to  rail. 

Men  should  be  suffered  thus  to  play  the  Fool 

To  keep  from  hurt,  as  Children  go  to  School, 

You  should  not  pine  in  spite  of  Nature  ? — True ; 

Yet  sure  'tis  greater  trouble  if  you  do ; 

And,  if  'tis  I/abouring  only,  Men  profess, 

Who  writes  the  hardest,  writes  with  most  Success. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Brethren  !  You've  lost  the  Roman  Spirit. 
What !  be  like  Sheep,  drove  into  Canada. 
What's  to  be  done,  do  it  speedily,  if  you  would  succeed. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1757.  277 

FEBRUARY. 

Courage  without  Conduct  is  like  a  fiery  Blast,  soon  extinguished. 
Now  the  Heavens  discharge  their  watery  Stores  in  great  Abundance. 

MARCH. 

Preparations  for  further  Campaigns  on  both  Sides  of  the  Water. 

APRIL. 

A  Man  of  true  Courage,  disdains  a  base  Action. 

Some  seek  Places  of  Profit,  more  than  their  Country's  Good ;  so  great 
is  the  Power  of  Self  Love  ! 

The  Nations  now  in  Anger  rise, 

to  prosecute  an  Hnterprize. 


There's  now  Abroad  a  pleasant  Air, 

but  Minds  within  perplex'd  with  anxious  Care. 

JUNE. 

Cowardice,  Covetousness   and  Treachery   destroy   the   best   concerted 
Schemes. 

If  Rain  comes  not  now,  I  know  not  when  it  will. 

JULY. 

A  strange  Bustle  about  a  Trifle. 

That  which  enriches  some  may  impoverish  many. 

AUGUST. 
What  Contention,  what  Confusion,  for  a  little  more  of  the  Earth  ! 

SEPTEMBER. 

Within  these  Northern  Climes, 
are  very  trying  Times. 
Strange  Amusements. 

OCTOBER. 

Every   one   that  wishes   for   better  Times  should  strive  to  be   better 
Himself. 

Desire  without  Endeavour  is  disappointment. 

NOVEMBER. 

Now  look  for  violent  Accidents,  and  Mischief  done  by  the  Enemy. 
A  Man  that  does  nothing  but  saunter  about,  to  tell  what  he  has  seen  or 
heard,  is  a  Burden  to  Himself,  his  Neighbour  and  the  Publick. 


278  ALMANACK    FOR    1757- 

DECEMBER. 

More  Schemes  projected  by  the  Fire  Side  than  can  be  good ;  but  much 
like  the  Winds  and  Weather,  how  variable  ?  how  unsettled  ? 

How  fast  the  Year  has  run  ! 

but  who  is  better  now  than  when  it  first  begun  ? 


Orthodox  Astronomy,  (if  I  may  so  speak)  asserts  that  our 
Earth  is  a  primary  Planet,  which  with  five  others  revolves  about 
the  Sun ;  and  that  the  fix'd  stars  are  Suns  to  other  Systems  of 
Worlds.  When  we  consider  the  Laws,  and  (Economy  of  Nature, 
the  Analogy,  and  flagrant  relation  between  these  Worlds  in 
each  material  System,  and  the  intelligent  Creatures  that  inhabit 
them  ;  these  Things  might  afford  Matter  of  curious  Speculation 
to  some  of  my  Readers,  but  I  here  present  them  with  a  Section 
transcribed  from  Dr.  Cheyne's  practical  Essay  on  the  Regimen 
of  DIET,  which  may  be  of  real  Use,  and  I  hope  will  not  be 
unacceptable. 

"  I  think  (says  that  great  Man)  the  natural  Order  and  Pro 
gression  in  Regimen  for  those  who  are  ordain'd  to,  or  for  those 
whose  Vocation  and  Occupation  is  sedentary  &  studious,  who 
by  the  Order  of  Providence  and  Situation  of  Life,  have  been 
signatur'd  to  intellectual  Professions,  and  for  all  those  who 
would  cultivate  and  maintain  clear  Heads  and  quick  Senses  to 
the  last,  is  from  their  Birth,  till  Fifteen,  to  persevere  in  a  grad 
ually  increasing  temperate  Diet,  without  fermented  Liquors : 
From  Fifteen  to  Fifty,  to  be  only  temperate  in  animal  Foods 
and  fermented  Liquors:  After  Fifty  to  give  up  animal  Food 
Suppers,  and  fermented  Liquors :  After  Sixty  to  give  up  all 
animal  Food ;  &  then  every  Ten  Years  after,  to  lessen  about 
the  Quarter  of  the  Quantity  of  their  vegetable  Food  :  And  thus 
gradually  descend  out  of  Life  as  they  ascended  into  it.  And 
that  all  Persons  subject  to  inflammatory  Distemper,  Gouts, 
Erisipelas,  hot  Scurvies,  Leprosies,  Asthmas,  Jaundices, 
Cholicks,  nervous  Lowlinesses,  violent  Head-achs,  Haemor 
rhages  and  Haemorrhoids,  Anasarcas,  Ruptures,  or  white 
Swellings,  tho'  otherwise  strong,  hearty,  hale  and  of  a  seeming 
sound  Constitution,  ought  to  give  up  all  Meat  Suppers,  and  all 
fermented  Liquors;  And  the  Children  of  all  Fathers  (for 


ALMANACK    FOR    1757-  279 

Mothers  are  not  here  to  be  minded)  who  have  died  before 
Thirty-Five  of  any  natural  Distemper  whatever,  and  all  Children 
begot  of  Fathers  after  Sixty,  ought  to  live  without  Meat  Suppers, 
or  fermented  Liquors ;  And  that  all  Persons  whatever,  whatever 
Age  they  be  of  or  of  whatever  Nature  their  Complaints  and 
Disorders  may  be,  if  upon  repeated  small  Phlebotomies,  and 
without  transient  Accidents,  ( as  Colds,  Damps,  Blasts  and 
Bruises)  they  constantly  observe  their  Blood  sizy,  viscous  and 
glutinous,  ought  directly  to  be  put  on  a  low  Diet,  either  on 
Milk,  Seeds  and  Vegetables  only,  or  at  least  of  one,  without 
Meat  Suppers  and  fermented  Liquors :  And  this  Regimen, 
with  proper  attenuant,  alterative  and  sweetning  Medicines, 
( which  in  the  Nature  of  Things,  ought  to  be  of  the  mild,  pon 
derous  and  mineral  Tribe)  to  be  continued  'till  at  least  the 
Size  &  Glew  be  broken  and  dissolved,  else  they  can  never  expect 
uniform  and  continued  Health :  For  such  a  Regimen  and  such 
Medicines,  must  do  this  in  Time;  else  nothing  in  Nature 
possibly  can." 


Oil  1757* — The  muse  tolls  a  very  sad  note  on  the  muffled 
bell,  and  in  dolorous  verse  mourns  the  departing  glories  and  possessions 
of  Albion  and  for  which  the  present  eclipse  is  alluded  to  as  the  o'er- 
shadowing  cause  of  all  these  varied  ills,  and  dire  disasters. 

Laziness  and  Labor  are  compared  in  the  monthly  verses,  and  the 
crabbed,  quarrelsome,  fault-finding  disposition  analysed,  and  scarified. 
In  conclusion  the  Doctor  apologizes  for  his  cacoethes  scribendi,  in  a 
characteristic  manner. 

His  essay  departs  again  from  the  study  of  the  stars,  and  in  lieu  thereof 
he  presents  an  extract  from  "  Dr.  Cheyne's  :  *  regimen  of  Diet." 

The  weather  column  contains  many  pointed  allusions  to  the  late  mili 
tary  disasters,  and  satirical  remarks  on  the  responsibility  of  certain  indi 
viduals  indirectly  put. 


280  ALMANACK    FOR    1728. 

THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1758. 
By  Nathaniel  Ames. 

BOSTON;  NEW  ENGLAND : 
Printed  by  J.  DRAPER,  for  the  Booksellers. 


The  Starry  Parliament,  whose  twinkling  Byes, 

With  mystic  Characters  imboss  the  Skies, 

And  sparkle  on  the  Brow  of  shady  Night ; 

Heav'n's  high  Expanse  with  their  portent'ous  Light 

Is  fill'd  ;  and  glorious  Blazes  play 

In  Knots  of  Light  along  the  Milky-Way. 

Vast  Worlds  of  Light  in  feeble  Orbits  glow ; 

Their  Space  immense  must  needs  ordain  it  so : 

Worlds  without  Number  worthy  of  their  GOD  ! 

And  of  bright  Seraphims  perhaps  th'  Abode. 


JANUARY. 

Content  with  Poverty,  niy  Soul  I  arm  ; 

A  Virtue,  tho'  in  Rags,  will  keep  me  warm : 

Whose  Fortune  is  not  fitted  to  his  Will, 

Too  great,  or  little,  is  uneasy  still. 

Our  Shoes  and  Fortunes  sure  are  much  allay'd, 

We  limp  in  Strait,  and  stumble  in  the  Wide. 

FEBRUARY. 

Sure  there  is  none  but  fears  a  future  State ; 

And  when  the  most  Obdurate  swear,  they  do  not ; 

Their  trembling  Hearts  bely  their  boasting  Tongues. 

Divines  but  peep  on  undiscover'd  Worlds, 

And  draw  the  distant  Landskip  as  they  please : 

But  who  has  e'er  return'd  from  those  bright  Regions, 

To  tell  their  Manners  ;  and  relate  their  Laws  ? 

MARCH. 

With smooth  Looks  and  many  a  gentle  Word 

The  first  Fair  she  beguil'd  her  easy  Lord : 


ALMANACK  FOR  1758.  281 

Too  blind  with  Love  and  Beauty  to  beware, 

He  fell,  unthinking,  in  the  fatal  Snare ; 

Nor  could  believe  that  such  a  heav'nly  Face 

Had  bargain'd  with  the  Devil  to  damn  her  wretched  Race. 

APRIL. 

GOD  grant  a  Hero  with  an  even  Soul, 
A  steady  Temper  which  no  Cares  controul. 
The  Wise  and  Active  conquer  Difficulties, 
By  daring  to  attempt  them :  Sloth  and  Folly 
Shiver  and  shrink  at  sight  of  Toil  and  Hazard 
And  make  th'  Impossibility  they  fear. 

MAY. 

The  peaceful  Peasant  to  the  War  is  press'd ; 
The  Fields  lie  fallow  in  inglorious  Rest ; 
The  gloomy  Throngs  look  terrible  from  far, 
Disclosing,  show  the  horrid  Face  of  War : 
The  thick  Battalions  move  in  dreadful  Form, 
As  low'ring  Clouds  advance  before  a  Storm. 

JUNE. 

THE  Powers  militant 

That  stand  for in  mighty  Quadrate  join 

Of  Union  irresistable,  move  on 
In  Silence  their  bright  Legions,  to  the  Sound 
Of  instrumental  Harmony,  that  breathes 
Heroick  Ardour  to  advent'rous  Deeds. 

JULY. 

AND  now, 

"  'Twixt  Host  and  Host,  but  narrow  Space  is  left, 
"  A  dreadful  Interval!  and  Front  to  Front 
"  Presented,  stand  in  terrible  Array 

"  Of  hideous  Length dire  is  the  Noise 

"Of  Conflict— 

AUGUST, 

The  Storm  let  loose ;  red  Lightning's  downward  hurl'd, 

And  thundering  Peals  alarm  th'  affrighten'd  World : 

At  once  the  Hills,  that  to  the  Clouds  aspire, 

Are  wash'd  with  furious  Rains,  and  scorch'd  with  Fire ; 

'Til  the  fierce  Hurricane  is  heard  no  more, 

And  Nature  smiles  as  gayly  as  before. 


282  ALMANACK  FOR  1758. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Some  Men  can  smile,  and  murther  whilst  they  smile, 
And  cry  Content  to  that  which  grieves  their  Hearts, 
And  wet  their  Cheeks  with  artificial  Tears. 
Who  dares  think  one  Thing,  and  another  tell, 
My  Soul  detests  him  as  the  Gates  of  Hell. 

OCTOBER. 

We  of  our  Foes  shall  great  Advantage  have 

If  none  command  our  Armies  but  the  brave : 

On  Valour's  Side  the  Odds  of  Combate  lye  ; 

The  Brave  live  glorious,  or  lamented  die : 

The  Wretch  who  trembles  in  the  Field  of  Fame 

Meets  Death,  or  worse  than  Death,  eternal  Shame. 

NOVEMBER. 

Fierce  Boreas  with  his  Offspring  issues  forth 
T'  invade  the  frozen  Waggons  of  the  North  ; 
But  when  the  Wings  of  wanton  Zephyr  flie, 
To  puff  away  the  Clouds,  and  purge  the  Sky, 
Serenely  whilst  he  blows,  the  Vapours  driv'n 
Discover  Heav'n  to  Earth,  and  Earth  to  Heav'n. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Sun  from  far  peeps  with  a  sickly  Face, 
Too  weak  the  Clouds  and  misty  Fogs  to  chace ; 
From  Locks  uncomb'd,  and  from  the  frozen  Beard 
Long  Iceicles  depend,  and  crackling  Sounds  are  heard ; 
Mean  Time  perpetual  Sleet  and  driving  Snow 
Obscure  the  Skies,  and  hang  on  Herds  below. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOR. 

JANUARY. 

An  unexpected  Change  cP  T?  cT      This  Opposition  portends  much  Mis 
chief  of  a  sudden  and  violent  Nature. 

FEBRUARY. 

If  you  fall  into  Misfortunes,  creep  thro'  those  Bushes  which  have  the 
least  Briars. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1758.  283 

MARCH. 

'Tis  Virtue  only  makes  our  Bliss  below ; 
And  all  our  Knowledge  is  our  selves  to  know. 
Learning  makes  a  good  Man  better,  but  a  bad  Man  worse. 

Britain  !  O  let  us  give  one  dire  Blow ; 

Before  you  let  your  injur'd  Hands  go. 

APRIL. 

Now  you  that  crawl  out  for  Health  beware 

Of  the  present  Wind's  moist  Air. 
Expectation  waits  to  know, 
Whether  the  Mountain  bears  a  Mouse  or  no. 
Industry  and  Frugality  makes  a  poor  Man  rich. 

MAY. 

A  Union  of  Council,  and  Affection,  in  the  common  Cause,  will  produce 
good  Effects,  but  Discord  and  Disaffection,  ends  in  Disappointment. 

JUNE. 

They  who  have  Nothing  to  trouble  them,  will,  Themselves,  be  a  Trouble 
to  Others. 

Let  us  awake, 
Our  All's  at  Stake. 

JUIvY. 

Ye  Ladies,  Why  in  such  a  Bloom  ? 

When  you  cannot  tell  your  Country's  Doom. 

He  can't  speak  well,  who  always  Talks. 

AUGUST. 

The  verdant  Field  with  purple  Gore  is  stain'd  all  o'er. 
Changes  of  many  Sorts  in  divers  Parts  of  the  Earth. 

SEPTEMBER. 

A  mighty  Combustion 
Which  tends  to  Confusion. 

OCTOBER. 
An  unlucky  Season. 

After  a  Bustle  in  the  Air, 
The  Weather's  very  calm  and  fair. 

There  are  three  faithful  Friends  :    an  old  Wife,  an  old  Dog,  and  ready 
Cash. 


284  ALMANACK    FOR    1758. 

NOVEMBER. 

Were  Things  done  twice,  Many  would  be  wise. 
A  Man  out  of  Favour, 
Is  slighted  by  a  Neighbour. 

Some  Fools  make  Feasts,  for  wise  Men  to  eat. 

DECEMBER. 

An  honest  Farmer,  now  at  ease, 

Regales  himself  with  Cyder,  Bread  &  Cheese. 


A    THOUGHT  upon   the  past,   present,   and  future   State   of 
NORTH  AMERICA. 

America  is  a  subject  which  daily  becomes  more  and  more 
interesting : — I  shall  therefore  fill  these  Pages  with  a  Word  upon 
its  Past,  Present  and  Future  State. 

I.  First  of  its  Past  State  :     Time  has  cast  a  Shade  upon  this 
Scene. — Since   the  Creation   innumerable  Accidents  have   hap 
pened  here,  the  bare  mention  of  which  would  create  Wonder  and 
Surprize ;  but  they  are  all  lost  in  Oblivion  :    The  ignorant  Natives 
for  Want  of  Letters  have  forgot  their  Stock  ;  and  know  not  from 
whence  they  came,  or  how,  or  when  they  arrived  here,  or  what 
has   happened   since : — Who  can  tell  what  wonderful   Changes 
have   happen'd   by   the   mighty  Operations  of  Nature,  such  as 
Deluges,  Vulcanoes,  Earthquakes,  &c.! — Or  whether  great  tracts 
of  I/and  were  not  absorbed  into  those  vast  Lakes  or  Inland  Seas 
which  occupy  so  much  Space  to  the  West  of  us. — But  to  leave 
the  Natural,  and  come  to  the  Political  State :    We  know  how  the 
French  have  erecled  a  Line  of  Forts  from  the  Ohio  to  Nova  Scotia, 
including  all  the  inestimable  Country  to  the  West  of  us,  into 
their  exorbitant  Claim. — This,  with  infinite  Justice,  the  English 
resented,  &  in  this  Cause  our  Blood  has  been  spill'd :  Which 
brings  to  our  Consideration, 

II.  Secondly,  The  Present  State  of  NORTH  AMERICA.— A 
Writer   upon   this   present   Time   says,    "  The    Parts   of  North 


ALMANACK    FOR    1758.  285 

America  which  may  be  claimed  by  Great  Britain  or  France  are 
of  as  much  Worth  as  either  Kingdom. — That  fertile  Country  to 
the  West  of  the  Appalachian  Mountains  (a  String  of  8  or  900 
Miles  in  Length,)  between  Canada  and  the  Mississippi,  is  of 
larger  Extent  than  all  France,  Germany  and  Poland ;  and  all 
well  provided  with  Rivers,  a  very  fine  wholesome  Air,  a  rich 
Soil,  capable  of  producing  Food  and  Physick,  and  all  Things 
necessary  for  the  Conveniency  and  Delight  of  Life :  In  fine, 
the  Garden  of  the  World!"  -Time  was  we  might  have  been 
possess'd  of  it :  At  this  Time  two  mighty  Kings  contend  for  this 
inestimable  Prize : — Their  respective  Claims  are  to  be  measured 
by  the  Length  of  their  Swords. — The  Poet  says,  The  Gods  and 
Opportunity  ride  Post ;  that  you  must  take  her  by  the  Forelock 
being  Bald  Behind. — Have  we  not  too  fondly  depended  upon  our 
Numbers  ? — Sir  Francis  Bacon  says,  ' '  The  Wolf  careth  not  how 
many  the  Sheep  be :"  But  Numbers  well  spirited,  with  the 
Blessing  of  Heaven  will  do  Wonders,  when  by  military  Skill  and 
Discipline,  the  Commanders  can  actuate  (as  by  one  Soul)  the 
most  numerous  bodies  of  arm'd  People  : — Our  Numbers  will  not 
avail  till  the  Colonies  are  united  ;  for  whilst  divided,  the  strength 
of  the  Inhabitants  is  broken  like  the  petty  Kingdoms  in  Africa. 
—If  we  do  not  join  Heart  and  Hand  in  the  common  Cause 
against  our  exulting  Foes,  but  fall  to  disputing  among  ourselves, 
it  may  really  happen  as  the  Governour  of  Pennsylvania  told  his 
Assembly,  "  We  shall  have  no  Priviledge  to  dispute  about,  nor 

Country  to  dispute  in." 

III.  Thirdly,  of  the  Future  State  of  NORTH  AMERICA— 
Here  we  find  a  vast  Stock  of  proper  Materials  for  the  Art  and 
Ingenuity  of  Man  to  work  upon  : — Treasures  of  immense  Worth  ; 
conceal'd  from  the  poor  ignorant  aboriginal  Natives  !  The 
Curious  have  observ'd,  that  the  Progress  of  Humane  Literature 
( like  the  Sun )  is  from  the  East  to  the  West ;  thus  has  it 
travelled  thro'  Asia  and  Europe,  and  now  is  arrived  at  the  Eastern 


286  ALMANACK  FOR  1758. 

Shore  of  America,  As  the  Ccelestial  Light  of  the  Gospel 
was  directed  here  by  the  Finger  of  G  O  D  ,  it  will  doubtless, 
finally  drive  the  long !  long !  Night  of  Heathenish  Darkness 
from  America  : — So  Arts  and  Sciences  will  change  the  Face  of 
Nature  in  their  Tour  from  Hence  over  the  Appalachian  Mount 
ains  to  the  Western  Ocean ;  and  as  they  march  thro'  the  vast 
Desert,  the  Residence  of  Wild  Beasts  will  be  broken  up,  and 
their  obscene  Howl  cease  for  ever  ; — Instead  of  which  the  Stones 
and  Trees  will  dance  together  at  the  Music  of  Orpheus, — the 
Rocks  will  disclose  their  hidden  Gems, — and  the  inestimable 
Treasures  of  Gold  &  Silver  be  broken  up.  Huge  Mountains  of 
Iron  Ore  are  already  discovered ;  and  vast  Stores  are  reserved 
for  future  Generations :  This  Metal  more  useful  than  Gold  and 
Silver,  will  imploy  Millions  of  Hands,  not  only  to  form  the 
martial  Sword,  and  peaceful  Share,  alternately ;  but  an  Infinity 
of  Utensils  improved  in  the  Exercise  of  Art,  and  Handicraft 
amongst  Men.  Nature  thro'  all  her  Works  has  stamp'd  Author 
ity  on  this  Law,  namely,  "  That  all  fit  Matter  shall  be  improved 
to  its  best  Purposes." — Shall  not  then  those  vast  Quarries,  that 
teem  with  mechanic  Stone, — those  for  Structure  be  piled  into 
great  Cities, — and  those  for  Sculpture  into  Statues  to  perpetuate 
the  Honor  of  renowned  Heroes  ;  even  those  who  shall  NOW 

save  their  Country. O  !  Ye  unborn  Inhabitants  of  America  ! 

Should  this  Page  escape  its  destin'd  Conflagration  at  the  Year's 
Hnd,  and  these  Alphabetical  Letters  remain  legible, — when  your 
Byes  behold  the  Sun  after  he  has  rolled  the  Seasons  round  for 
two  or  three  Centuries  more,  you  will  know  that  in  Anno  Dom 
ini  1758,  we  dream'd  of  your  Times. 

NATH.  AMES. 


on  1758. — Again  the  year  is  ushered  in  with  a  poetic  salute 
to  the  "  Starry  Parliament,"  always  a  foremost  thought  in  the  Doctor's 
mind.  Then  follow  the  captions  of  each  month,  with  all  the  variety  of 
ideas  which  our  Author  has  at  command. 

Poverty  and  Contentment — a  glance  at  Futurity — Love  and  Beauty — 


ALMANACK    FOR    1758.  287 

with  the  usual  ungallant  slap  at  the  daughters  of  Eve,  on  account  of  that 
unfortunate  ancestress  having  in  an  unguarded  moment  stopped  to  con 
verse  with  that  confounded  snake.  Sloth  and  Activity,  with  an  indirect 
allusion  to  the  paucity  of  properly  constructed  Heroes  to  add  renown  to 
the  British  arms  and  influence.  Conscription,  neglected  fields,  and  "  grim 
visag'd  War," — the  crash  of  Conflict — Thunder  and  Lightning,— a  side 
long  glance  at  "the  Unpopular  King"  with  his  convenient  forms  of  Deceit — 
Bravery  and  Cowardice, — Boreas  and  his  ice-cart,  with  the  seasonable 
finale  of  snow  and  slush. 

But  the  essay  in  this  Almanack  bears  the  palm,  and  should  any  one 
doubt  the  power  of  the  Doctor  to  forecast  the  future,  or  if  they  should 
have  any  misgivings  as  to  his  thorough  Americanism,  his  patriotism,  his 
loyalty  to  his  king,  and  his  faith  in  the  future  of  this  country  ;  he  need  but 
carefully  read  the  "  Thoughts  upon  the  past,  present  and  future  state  of 
North  America,"  to  be  thoroughly  and  at  once  disabused  of  that  idea. 

The  first  part  of  his  "  Thought "  treats  of  Natural  changes  in  the  past; 
the  second  the  present  political  condition  of  affairs,  and  the  struggle  of 
Briton  and  Gaul  for  temporal  power  ;  while  the  third,  and  to  us  the  most 
interesting  portion  of  his  reflections,  treats  of  the  future.  A  prog 
nostication  remarkable  in  the  annals  of  predictions  as  being  almost 
unique,  and  evincing  beyond  dispute  that  Doctor  Ames  was  far  in  advance 
of  any  of  his  compeers,  in  his  appreciation  of  the  possibilities  of  America 
in  the  developement  of  its  resources. 

For  ages  the  "spirit  of  prophecy"  has  been  reputed  to  dwell  with  cer 
tain  individuals  of  certain  nations :  Persons  who  had  had  the  peculiar 
felicity  of  being  cauled  into  the  world  with  a  peculiar  veil  over  their  faces  ; 
or  who  by  supreme  circumspection  and  calculation  on  the  part  of  their 
ancestors,  rejoiced  in  the  proud  and  mysterious  distinction  of  being  the 
seventh  son  or  daughter,  of  a  seventh  son  or  daughter.  These  particu 
larly  were  reputed  to  have  foreknowledge  of  future  events,  and  among 
the  credulous  were  eagerly  sought,  for  information  of  "  lucky  numbers," 
stolen  goods,  etc.,  as  ever  were  the  astrologers  and  other  mystagogues  of 
a  darker  age. 

Among  the  ancient  celebrities  said  to  possess  these  most  valuable 
faculties  :  was  i,  Merlin  (A.  D.  425-471)  surnamed  Ambrosius,  who  by  his 
mother's  account  "was  conceived  by  the  compression  of  a  fantastical 
spiritual  creature,  without  a  body,"  and  probably  from  this  fact  could  see 
things  better  than  the  average  mortal.  His  remarkable  birth  is  almost 
unique,  but  his  prophecies  are  fitted  to  almost  every  important  event  in 
British  history  for  hundreds  of  years. 

Another  was  Michael  Nostradamus  of  St.  Remy  in  France,  who  came 
into  the  world  in  the  orthodox  manner  about  1503 ;  the  only  peculiarity 
noted  concerning  his  ancestry  was  that  his  grandparents  were  "  skilfull  in 
Mathematick  and  Physick."  Michael  became  "  Physitian  in  Ordinary  to 
Henry  the  II.  and  Charles  the  IX.  Kings  of  France,"  and  combining  the 


288  ALMANACK  FOR  1758. 

then  very  necessary  adjunct  of  astrology,  he  put  in  his  odd  hours,  when 
not  engaged  in  "leeching"  the  royal  body,  in  performing  the  same  office 
for  the  subject's  purse.  He  also  has  left  behind  some  very  fitting  stanzas 
of  mysterious  import. 

One  more  familiar  to  modern  readers,  and  who  even  the  past  year  has 
been  quoted  quite  prominently,  is  that  "  dear,  delightful,  Old  Mother 
Shipton"  a  dame  of  the  Mother  Hubbard  variety,  who  shed  brilliancy  on 
the  age  in  which  she  lived,  beaming  first  from  a  small  village  in  Yorkshire, 
where  her  putative  father  was  in  business  as  a  "Jack  Pudding."  When 
his  repute  became  established,  he  was  commissioned  "  Necromancer  "  by 
an  admiring  constituency.  She  also  was  said  to  have  been  begotten  in 
the  Merlin  fashion,  by  the  "  Phantasm  of  Apollo"  or  some  wanton  "  Airial 
Daemon"  Hence  she  could  perform  remarkable  forecasts  in  a  similar 
manner  to  Dr.  Merlin. 

Following  these  were  prophets  of  lesser  repute,  among  whom  Nixon, 
the  Cheshire  prophet,  Joanna  Southcott,  and  others. 

All  of  these  artists  possessed  a  copiousness  of  language  which  was 
peculiarly  adapted  for  prophetical  allusion,  and  from  which  those  of  future 
generations  who  were  interested  could  pick  out  what  suited  the  case,  and 
go  to  bed  with  the  comforting  satisfaction  that  "  it  was  foretold  hundreds 
of  years  agone." 

The  foregoing  may  not  be  absolutely  relevant  to  the  matter  in  hand, 
but  is  merely  adverted  to  as  showing  that  the  imagination  of  those  of  a 
latter  day,  had  much  to  do  with  translating  the  mysterious  language  of 
these  charlatans  into  information  or  prescience  of  any  sort. 

In  America  we  have  never  had  any  person  of  any  rank  in  society,  who 
by  peculiarity  of  birth,  cast  of  countenance,  or  by  reason  of  ancestry,  was 
justly  reputed  with  the  "  sublime  art  of  forecasting  the  future."  The 
only  one  who  may  claim  any  such  distinction,  as  far  as  the  future  of  this 
country  has  in  a  meagre  way  been  predicted,  is  the  author  of  these  Alma 
nacks — Dr.  Nathaniel  Ames. 

One  could  not  expect  much  in  the  way  of  a  prognostication  of  this 
character  on  the  single  leaf  of  an  almanack,  which,  in  its  entirety,  sold  for 
the  small  sum  of  "  Five  Coppers."  Yet  here  it  is,  clad  not  in  the  volumin 
ous  language  of  a  mystagogue,  but  in  plain  Old  Testament  English,  setting 
forth  in  a  general  way  what  most  of  us  know  has  already  come  to  pass. 
The  period  of  opulence  has  arrived  sooner  than  he  predicted,  but  in 
detail,  each  item  alluded  to  has  more  than  been  fulfilled. 

I  only  regret  that  his  printer  had  not  added  an  extra  sheet  that  more 
of  the  Doctor's  wisdom  concerning  our  political  and  commercial  future 
might  have  been  set  down, 

We  possibly  could  have  learned  his  opinion  as  to  how  long  men  who 
were  "  born  free  and  equal  "  would  remain  in  that  condition  ;  also  whether 
their  condition  being  changed,  they  wrould  be  eligible  to  sit  on  juries,  or 
enjoy  the  blissful  conditions  entailed  on  our  great  and  growing  country 


ALMANACK  FOR  1759.  289 

by  the  generous  use  of  universal  suffrage  :  and  whether  within  one  hundred 
and  fifty  years  it  would  be  considered  not  how  the  country  should  be  gov 
erned  but  who  should  govern  it. 

(Gracious !  I  have  almost  got  my  kite  "  out  of  sight,"  and  have  drifted 
entirely  away  from  the  book.) 

The  "  squibs  "  this  year  betray  a  patriotic  anxiety  for  the  advancement 
of  the  country,  and  the  glory  of  the  British  arms. 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1759. 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 


BOSTON:    Printed  and  Sold  by 
DRAPER,  GREEN  &  RUSSELL,  &  FLEET.' 


Price  Two  Pistareens  per  Dozen,  and  Five  Coppers  Single. 


Dire  Wars  and  mutual  Rage  are  surely  come, 

E're  any  Comet  blaz'd  the  threatned  Doom  ! 

Kingdoms  and  States  impatiently  attend, 

The  great  Events  now  verging  to  an  End ; — 

When  three  Times  more  the  Sun  has  chear'd  the  Spring, 

A  new  important  ^ra  will  begin  : 

From  which  young  Date  and  settled  State  of  Things 

A  Train  of  strange  Events  and  Wonder  springs. 

1  The  appearance  of  this  triumvirate  of  printers  on  the  almanack  this 
year,  was,  according  to  The  History  of  Printing  in  America,  occasioned 
by  a  dispute  between  the  printers  and  booksellers,  in  substance  as  fol 
lows  : — "John  Draper  and  his  predecessor  Bartholomew  Green,  had  always 
purchased  the  copy  of  that  Almanac,  and  printed  it  on  their  own  account ; 
but  they  had  supplied  the  booksellers,  in  sheets,  by  the  hundred,  the 
thousand,  or  any  quantity  wanted.  About  the  year  1759,  this  Almanac 
was  enlarged  from  sixteen  pages  on  a  foolscap  sheet  to  three  half  sheets. 
Draper  formed  a  connection  with  Green  &  Russell  and  T.  &  J.  Fleet,  in 
its  publication.  A  half  sheet  was  printed  at  each  of  their  printing  houses  ; 
and  they  were  not  disposed  to  supply  booksellers  as  formerly. 


2QO  ALMANACK  FOR  I75Q. 

KIND  READER, 

I  here  present  you  with  my  Thirty-fourth  ALMANACK  pub 
lished.  Although  a  Perhaps,  with  Justice,  might  always  be 
added  to  what  I  say  of  the  Weather ;  yet  I  have  collected  the 
best  Rules  that  Experience  has  taught  me  in  that  Affair,  from 
the  Aspects,  and  Configurations  of  the  Planets  :  I  am  therefore 
constantly  obliged  to  trace  the  rambling  Moon,  and  wandering 
Planets,  in  all  their  intricate  Paths,  which  costs  me  much  Labour 
and  hard  study. — The  Poetry  this  Year  I  have  from  the  Inspir 
ation  of  the  Muses : — I  hope  they  will  not  blush  to  own  it. — 
What  looks  like  Prophecy  in  the  outward  Page,  I  grounded  on 
the  great  Conjunction  of  Saturn  and  fepiter,  which  is  to  happen 
Anno  Domini,  1762,  in  Aries,  a  Cardinal  Equinoctial  Sign. — 
Astrologers  for  a  long  Time  past  have  fixed  their  Eyes  on  that 
Point  of  Time  as  big  with  new  and  remarkable  Events, — if  the 
Learned  are  not  always  free  from  Superstition,  I  hope  an  Alman 
ack-Maker  does  not  talk  out  of  Character  to  mention  such 
Things. — I  have  carefully  put  the  Courts  of  the  several  Govern 
ments  on  the  respective  Days,  agreeable  to  and  compared  with 
the  Laws ;  I  have  procured  also  the  several  Stages  on  the  Roads 
from  Boston  to  New-  York,  &c.  from  those  who  have  often  trav 
elled  them,  which  may  be  depended  upon  to  be  exact,  as  they 
have  been  taken  down  lately,  and  not  from  the  Roads  published 
these  many  Years  past  in  other  Almanacks. 

The  Tables  of  Interest  at  5  per  Cent,  suitable  to  Rhode  Island 
and  Connecticut,  and  of  6  per  Cent,  for  Massachusetts  Bay,  as 
also  the  Value  of  Coins,  I  hope  will  not  be  unserviceable. — 
Reader,  I  have  added  half  a  sheet  to  the  Almanack  this  Year, 
which  I  hope  will  be  to  your  Satisfaction. 

Dedham,  Sept.  15,  1758.  N.  AMES. 


The  following  Lines  are  a  Description,  not  a  Prediction  of  an 

Earthquake : 

In  deepest  Caves  are  Beds  of  Sulphre  made, 
And  in  a  secret  fearful  Ambush  laid ; 
When  God's  avenging  Hand  shall  touch  the  Train, 
Some  warn'd  devoted  City  quick  is  slain. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1759-  29 1 

The  Earth  convuls'd,  her  Jaws  are  open'd  wide 
Churches  and  all  their  lofty  Spires  subside, 
To  Nature's  Womb  they  sink  with  dreadful  Throws, 
And  on  poor  screaming  Souls  the  Chasms  close. 


How  wond'rous,  Lord,  thy  mighty  Works  appear 
Thro'  all  the  Seasons  of  the  rolling  Year ! 
Thy  glorious  Name  is  equally  exprest, 
In  the  fair  Spring \  with  gay  Confusion  drest ; 
And  the  warm  Summer,  when  the  flashing  Cloud 
And  breaking  Thunders  speak  the  GOD  aloud : 
Autumrfs  ripe  Fruits,  the  lab'ring  Swain's  Delight, 
Paint  out  thy  Goodness  to  the  ravish'd  Sight ; 
What  daring  Mortal  can  His  Cold  withstand, 
Or  guide  His  Tempests  with  a  steady  Hand? 
When  o'er  the  Earth  the  fleecy  Snow  He  sends 
The  fleecy  Snow  His  sov'reign  Voice  attends : 
Thus  thro'  the  World,  thy  mighty  Pow'r  is  known, 
And  Savage  Nations  a  CREATOR  own. 


— Ten  thousand  Wonders  open  to  my  View, 
Shine  forth  at  once  ;    Sieges  and  Storms  appear, 
And  Wars  and  Conquests  fill  th'  important  Year, 
Rivers  of  Blood  I  see,  and  Hills  of  Slain, 
An  Iliad  rising  out  of  one  Campaign  ! 


JANUARY. 

A  Bloody  Conflict  casts  a  purple  Stain 

On  yonder  Lake,  that  bears  our  Sovereign's  Name, 

A  noble  Band  who  stood  the  first  Attack 

Firm  as  a  Rock,  nor  thought  of  turning  back  : 

Oh  had  their  Bodies,  like  their  Hearts,  been  Steel, 

Or  could  the  Force  of  whizzing  Balls  repel, 

They  might  have  liv'd  ! — But  gloriously  they  fell. 

FEBRUARY. 

In  future  Days,  when  Nations  smile  again, 
And  banish'd  PEACE  from  Heav'n  returns  to  Men 
As  Rusticus  with  Innocence  and  Toil 
Brings  to  the  new  uncultivated  Soil 


ALMANACK    FOR    1 759. 

He'll  start  amaz'd !  mixing  a  Tear  with  Groans, 
To  see  his  Plow-share  turn  up  Human  Bones ! 
Grey-headed  Sires  the  Myst'ry  will  explain, 
Who  mark'd  the  Place  where  lay  the  many  slain. 

MARCH. 

Had  we  wak'd  early  from  an  idle  Dream 

On  yonder  smooth  OHIO'S  winding  Stream, 

Our  Cities  might  have  stood,  and  Structures  shone, 

Magnificently  built  with  curious  Stone, 

With  all  the  Stores  of  Nature  there  possest, 

And  vast  Conveniences  for  Man  and  Beast. 

APRII,. 

Now  chearful  Mariners  unfurl  their  Sails, 
To  pleasant  Suns, — to  stead}',  gentle  Gales, 
Which  speed  their  Course  along  the  Wat'ry  Way, 
And  richly  all  the  Merchant's  Cares  repay ; 
The  Treasures  of  the  East  and  West  explor'd 
Are  now  in  vast  Repositories  stor'd. 

MAY. 

The  tuneful  Choir  welcome  with  Joy  and  Mirth 
The  Anniversary  of  Nature's  Birth  ; 
Native  Perfumes  are  blended  with  their  Song, 
And  Gentle  Gales  the  Transport  waft  along : 
Bach  Sense  some  Pleasure  to  the  Soul  does  bring ; 
And  brilliant  Plains  and  Valleys  laugh  and  sing. 

JUNE. 

Meridian  Suns  dart  down  their  fervid  Rays : 
The  glowing  Firmament  does  almost  blaze  ; 
'Till  from  the  West  the  gentle  Zephyr  springs, 
To  fan  the  fainting  World  with  breezy  Wings, 
And  sweep  the  Chambers  of  the  Atmosphere, 
And  purge  (from  Dregs  to  Life  adverse)  the  Air. 

JULY. 

His  ripen'd  Grain  writh  Joy  the  FARMKR  sees  ! 
The  bearded  Billows  rustle  with  the  Breeze  ; 
The  loaded  Blades  in  leaning  Posture  stand  ; 
And  silently  invite  the  Reaper's  Hand : 
For  this  Reward  he  cultivates  the  Soil ; 
This  long  expedted  Day  crowns  all  his  Toil. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1759-  293 

AUGUST. 

Behold  the  Clouds !     a  kind  of  Ocean  spread 
Along  th'  Aerial  Spaces  over  Head  ! 

What  Power  and  Skill  supports  their  pond'rous  Weight, 
Or  keeps  them  hov'ring  in  a  buoyant  State ! 
Nor  do  these  pendent  Lakes  at  once  descend ; 
But  fall  in  gentle  drops, — which  all  befriend. 

SEPTEMBER. 

After  the  Summer-Fruit's  cooling  Repast, 
(Kind  Heav'ns  Indulgencies  forever  last.) 
Autumn's  rich  Stores  in  next  Succession  come ; — 
The  Grape,  th'  Apple,  the  downy  Peach  and  Plumb : 
Nature's  Demands  these  charming  Dainties  suit ; 
Refresh  the  Healthy,  and  th'  Infirm  recruit. 

OCTOBER. 

The  Power  that  weilds  the  Ocean's  mighty  Weight, 
The  Element  has  bounded  by  the  Shore ; 
Or  its  proud  Waves  with  swelling  Billows  great 
Would  deluge  Continents  and  Kingdom's  o'er : 
Since  it's  alternate  Flowings  are  confin'd, 
To  many  noble  Ends,  they  serve  Mankind. 

NOVEMBER. 

The  Orchard  now  of  all  it's  Fruit  bereft ; 

Nor  Leaves,  nor  Blossoms  on  the  Trees  are  left ! 

They  stand  like  Logs,  fix'd  in  the  frozen  Ground, 

While  driving  Snows  their  lifeless  Trunks  surround : 

And  yet  e'er  long  without  our  Help  or  Aid, 

They'l  be  with  Leaves,  Blossoms  and  Fruit  array'd. 

DECEMBER. 

Tho'  now  the  ground  affords  a  Prospect  mean. 
'  Tis  Nature's  rich  Resource, — a  Magazine 
By  which  all  Nations  yearly  are  supply'd, 
Its  verdant  Stores  for  Man  and  Beast  provide : 
Dealt  freely  out  to  Generations  past, 
Undrain'd,  will  still  to  Generations  last. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

May  Heaven  preserve  the  Soldiers,  us,  and  all ; 
from  Poisons,  Plagues  and  Poxes,  great  and  small. 


2Q4  ALMANACK    FOR    1759. 

Fling  by  your  Wheels,  and  Sleighs  &  Sleds  provide ; 
Boys  fix  their  Skaits,  and  nimbly  they  slide. 

FEBRUARY. 

Projections  for  a  finishing  Stroke. 

MARCH. 

March  conies  in  like  a  Lyon,  this  Year ;    for  Boreas  a  searching  Blast 
does  blow,  which  chills  the  Air,  and  shakes  poor  Mortals,  here  below. 

Wet  underfoot,  and  over  Shoes  in  Dirt. 

Now  the  fierce  North  \Vind,  with  his  airey  Forces  rears  up  th'  Atlantick 
to  a  foaming  Fury. 

APRIL. 

K's  Court  Houses  now  are  Combustible. 

The  Verdure  of  the  Fields  will  soon  a  charming  Prospe<5l  yield. 

Now  many  a  fair  Prospect  is  crush'd  by  Disappointment. 

MAY. 

These  ticklish  Times  make  many  Minds  uneasy,  without  becoming 
Bankrupts. 

JUNE. 

What  human  Blood  is  shed  a  Sacrifice,  for  Spots  of  Earth,  which  never 
an  Ambitious  Minds  suffice. 

The  Fate  of  War,  How  precarious  !  how  distressing ! 

JULY. 

A  selfish  Man  is  envious,  and  hurts  his  Friend,  secretly,  by  Guile  & 
Deceit. 

A  mighty  Stir !  for  what  ? 

Why  that  which  never  can  be  got. 

AUGUST. 

Some  talk  of  calling  home  PEACE  from  a  long  Exile. 

The  News  of  which  follows,  and  crosses  the  wide  Atlantick. 

SEPTEMBER. 

How  many  have  been  slain, 
And  strew'd  upon  the  Plain, 
Since  last  Campaign ! 
A  cruel  Frost!  By  which  the  tenderest  Plants  are  lost. 

OCTOBER. 

The  Apple  Juice  without  Abuse  is  best  for  Use. 

There  may  be  a  private  Triumvirate  form'd  to  promote  Injustice. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1759. 


295 


NOVEMBER. 


Many  Heads  at  work,  and  Hands  employed,  to  accommodate  Affairs. 
Something  remarkable  in  the  Winds,  and  Weather ;  and  many  unlucky 
violent  Accidents,  in  several  parts  of  the  Earth,  besides  this. 


DECEMBER. 


Strife  &  Contention  upon  a  new  Invention. 

Now  many  Castles  in  the  Air  are  built,  whose  Makers  go  to  Fools 
Paradise,  described  by  MII/TON. 


The  Solar  Syfteih. 


©Fixed 


xplanation  of,th<*>  above  Syftem-i«  "-in  'tlie 
wing  the  Month  of  December.  '    ;~ 

Ai  tUe  Writing  tHis,  it  was  not  determined  whe&er  the 
.  would  ajejr  or  no: 


EXPLANATION  of  the  SYSTEM  (in  the  Front  Page.) 

This  Figure  represents  the  true  System  of  the  Universe, 
which  being  understood,  will  exalt  our  Ideas  and  excite  our 
highest  Admiration  of  the  magnificent  Works  of  God. 

The  Sun  being  placed  in  the  Centre  with  the  several  Planets 
revolving  about  Him  in  their  natural  order.  All  allow  that  the 


296  ALMANACK  FOR  1759. 

Earth  is  one  of  the  Planets  in  the  Solar  System,  and  Curiosity 
will  excite  us  to  look  after  the  Situation  of  that  Planet  which  we 
know  is  inhabited.  You  see  then,  that  this  Earth  is  the  third 
Planet  from  the  Sun  in  this  System,  and  its  Orbit  is  situate 
between  the  Orbit  of  Mars  and  Venus  ;  and  the  Earth  revolves 
about  the  Sun  in  that  Circle  you  see  there  described,  in  the 
Space  of  one  Year  ;  in  performing  which  it  turns  East  on  its  own 
Axis  365  Times  and  almost  a  quarter  more.  As  the  Earth 
revolves  about  the  Sun  in  his  Orbit,  the  Power  of  Attraction 
carries  the  Moon  revolving  about  the  Earth  in  her  Orbit ;  and 
this  Analogy,  consonant  to  the  known  Laws  of  Matter  and 
Motion,  runs  through  the  Planetary  System. 

A  Planetary  Year  is  the  Revolution  of  the  Planet  about  the 
Sun,  and  is  performed  in  Times,  in  Square  Proportion  to  the 
Cubes  of  their  Distances.  Those  who  gain  no  other  Ideas  of  the 
heavenly  Spaces,  and  the  glorious  Bodies  therein  contained,  but 
what  is  derived  to  them  by  the  bear  Sight  of  the  Eye,  would  do 
well  to  consider,  That  wherever  the  Spectator  resides  he  will 
still  be  in  the  Centre  of  his  own  View  ;  for  in  an  indefinite  Space, 
where  there  is  nothing  to  bound  our  Prospect,  all  Objects  that 
are  at  a  great  Distance  from  us,  though  they  be  at  immense 
Distances  from  one  another,  yet  if  they  appear  in  the  same  right 
lyine  which  passes  through  the  Eye,  will  be  seen  at  the  same 
Point  of  Space  :  And  all  Bodies  will  appear  equally  remote, 
when  their  Distances  from  us  become  so  great  that  the  Eye  can 
not  estimate  or  judge  of  them ;  and  consequently,  the  Spectator 
will  look  upon  them  all  as  placed  in  the  Surface  of  a  Sphere 
which  has  the  Eye  for  its  Centre,  and  whose  Surface  is  at  an 
immense  Distance,  in  which  Surface  all  the  Heavenly  Bodies 
will  seem  to  perform  their  Motions.  In  whatever  Place,  there 
fore,  the  Spectator  resides,  whether  it  be  in  the  Earth,  or  any  of 
the  Planets,  or  Sun,  or  even  in  a  Fixed  Star,  that  Place  will  be 
look'd  upon  by  its  Inhabitants  as  the  Middle  Point  of  the 
Universe,  aud  the  Center  of  the  World,  since  it  is  the  Center  of 
that  Spherical  Surface  in  which  all  distant  Bodies  seem  to  be 
placed. 

When  we  view  this  wonderful  Fabric  of  the  Universe,  and 
the  Beauty  of  the  Stars,  in  a  supine  Manner,  throw  aside  our 
Reason,  aud  form  our  Opinions  of  them,  by  the  Dictates  of  our 


ALMANACK   FOR    1759-  297 

Senses,  despising  the  Report  of  Men  of  GeniuSj  Learning  and 
Leisure,  who  by  the  help  of  Glasses,  bring  these  distant  Objects 
vastly  nearer  to  the  Eye :— I  say,  under  these  Circumstances,  we 
are  apt  to  conclude,  that  the  Sun,  Moon  and  Stars,  were  made 
only  to  decorate  and  serve  this  Earth,  that  they  perform  their 
slavish  Journey  round  it  every  24  Hours  ;  that  this  Spot,  or 
Earth,  which  we  dwell  upon,  only  is  inhabited ;  and  that  we 
ourselves  are  the  only  intelligent  Creatures  that  possess  the 
Universe.  Pride  becomes  such  ignorance  !  But  all  those  who 
by  a  serious  Enquiry  have  gained  a  true  (tho5  not  an  adequate, 
comprehensive)  Notion  of  the  Universe,  look  upon  such  an 
Opinion  with  the  same  Contempt  that  we  do  on  a  poor  Maniac, 
who  sits  in  his  Hovel  on  a  Wisp  of  Straw,  and  fancies  himself 
a  Monarch,  and  that  all  the  Persons  about  him  are  his  Subjects. 

The  other  Planets  are  like  this  Earth  in  Situation  and  Cir 
cumstances,1  having  Summer  and  Winter,  Day  and  Night,  Land 
and  Sea  ;  We  have  but  one  Moon  ;  and  how  many  and  great  are 
the  Advantages  of  it  to  the  World?  But  some  of  the  other 
Planets  have  a  Plurality  of  Moons,  that  as  a  bright  retinue  attend 
them  wherever  they  go.  I  have  proved  that  an  Eye  placed  in 
any  of  the  Planets  would  have  much  the  same  Prospect  that  we 
have.  Shall  then,  their  Heavens  be  stretch'd  forth  like  a  Cur 
tain,  and  their  North  over  the  empty  Place,  and  no  Eye  to  behold 
it !  Is  the  Divine  Bounty  and  Goodness  there,  only  bestowed  on 
Stocks  and  Stones,  and  other  inanimate  Creatures !  Do  far  the 
most  Noble  and  Magnificent  Parts  of  the  Creation,  return  no 
Praise  and  Gratitude  to  their  Creator  !  Monstrous  Absurdity. 

The  foregoing  Figure  also  represents  the  Path  of  the  remark 
able  Comet  expected  this  Year. 

Comets  or  Blazing  Stars,  are  a  sort  or  kind  of  Planets;  They 
may  be  stiled  Planets,  because  they  revolve  about  the  same  Sun 
the  Planets  do ;  they  are  made  of  the  same  Materials,  and  are 
subject  to  the  same  Law  of  Gravitation  which  the  Planets  are ; 
but  their  Orbits  are  exceeding  Excentrical,  on  which  account 
they  ascend  a  great  Height  above  the  System  of  the  Planets  ; 
and  spend  almost  all  their  Time  in  the  remote  cold  Regions  of 

1  See  Mr.  Huygerfs  Celestial  Worlds  discovered,  and  Mr.  Derham's 
Astro.  Theologia. 


298  ALMANACK  FOR  1759. 

the  Universe,  at  vast  Distances  both  from  the  Planets,  and  from 
one  another.  As  they  descend  to  the  Sun  they  approach  so  near 
as  to  be  intensely  hot ;  which  uneven  Heats  and  Colds  render 
them  unfit  for  Habitation.  By  lessening  the  Velocity  of  the 
projectile  Motion  of  this  Earth,  and  the  other  Planets,  they 
would  descend  to  and  ascend  from  the  Sun,  in  Orbits  excentrical 
like  the  Comets.  Thus  easy  is  it  for  the  great  Governour  of 
these  Worlds  to  change  the  Course  of  Nature,  and  reduce  them 
to  the  unhappy  Circumstances  of  these  Blazing  Stars. — A  dole 
ful  Inheritance,  reserv'd  perhaps  for  the  Punishment  of  their 
ancient  guilty  Inhabitants ! 

But  beyond  the  utmost  Wanderings  of  these  Comets  is  the 
infinite  Expansum,  occupied  by  the  Fixed  Stars;  which  with 
the  greatest  Reason  and  Probability  are  judged  to  be  Suns 
as  large  as  ours ;  which  enlighten,  warm  and  cherish  their 
respective  Systems  of  Worlds  that  revolve  about  them  ;  and  it  is 
only  their  amazing  Distance  which  makes  them  appear  so  small. 
This  I  have  endeavoured  to  represent  by  those  Stars  without  the 
Orbit  of  Satur?i ;  and  those  Circles  about  them  are  to  shew  the 
Orbits  of  their  revolving  Planets.  Lo !  these  are  Part  of  His 
Ways !  But  when  we  view  the  Heavens  with  our  Glasses,  we 
discover  many  more  Stars  than  our  naked  Eye  can  reach ;  and 
when  we  view  them  with  better  and  better  Instruments,  we  dis 
cover  more  and  more  of  these  Starry  Globes ;  and  after  all,  per 
haps  we  cannot  see  the  thousandth  Part  of  what  the  Heavens 
contain. 


Of  the  Cause  of  Sickness  in  the  Camp,  and  the  Method  to  prevent 

the  same. 

As  a  great  Number  of  Men  of  late  Years  have  been  called 
into  the  War  for  the  Defence  of  our  Country,  and  altho'  many 
have  fallen  in  Battle,  yet  I  believe  more  have  died  of  Sickness  in 
the  Camp.  An  Enquiry  into  the  Reason  why  the  Camp  often 
becomes  extremely  sickly,  and  to  point  out  some  Salutary 
Methods  to  prevent  the  same,  I  hope  will  not  be  unacceptable  at 
this  Time. — I  may  venture  to  assert,  that  a  proper  Choice  of 
those  Materials  of  which  we  take  daily  and  in  great  Quantities, 


ALMANACK    FOR    1759-  299 

for  the  Nourishment  and  Support  of  our  Lives,  relates  more  to 
our  Health  and  Comfort;  and  has  more  Power  to  prevent  Dis 
eases,  than  those  Medicines  which  we  take  but  seldom,  and  in 
small  Quantities,  have  to  remove  Diseases  after  we  are  attack'd 
by  them.  The  best  Beef  and  Pork  tend  to  decay  and  corrupt, 
and  such  Substances  used  in  Diet  (that  is  in  an  undue  Propor 
tion,  without  being  balanced  with  Farinacious1  Substances, 
Fruits  and  Herbage)  naturally  produce  Acrimony  in  the  Blood, 
and  daily  dispose  it  to  a  state  of  Putrefaction.  I  have  forgot  the 
Number  of  Days  Doct.  Arburthnot  asserts,  that  a  Meat  Diet 
without  Bread,  and  only  Water  for  Drink,  will  certainly  produce 
a  Fever  in ;  but  he  is  very  particular,  and  the  Time  he  sets  is 
short.  If  Water,  which  is  simple  and  innocent,  cannot  withstand 
the  Alkaline2  State  of  Blood,  which  such  a  Diet  produces; 
spirituous  Liquors  substituted  in  the  stead  of  Water,  will  pro 
duce  these  bad  Effects  in  a  much  shorter  Time. 

If  the  common  Soldiers  have  as  good  and  wholesome  Meat 
dealt  out  to  them  as  the  Officers  have,  yet  the  Privates  have  not 
the  same  Antidotes,  which  qualifies  their  Meat  and  makes  it 
wholsome,  as  Wine,  Cyder,  Lemmons,  Vegetable  Seeds,  Roots, 
&c,  neither  are  they  kept  so  clean,  nor  enjoy  quite  so  good  an 
Air,  therefore  they  are  more  sickly. 

Some  Persons  are  of  such  firm  Constitutions  that  their  vital 
Force  is  able  to  subdue  all  the  sapid  Substances  they  feed  upon. 
But  in  all  Persons  who  commit  Error  on  this  Hand  in  their  Diet, 
who  have  not  such  vital  Force,  the  Alkaline  Salts  from  such 
a  Diet,  will  not  be  sufficiently  attenuated,  and  they  will  retain 
their  original  Qualities,  which  ever  tends  to  Putrefaction  ;  which 
will  be  discovered  by  producing  a  stinking  Breath,  rotten, 
corroded  Gums ;  high  colour'd  foetid  Urine ;  black,  blue  and 
brown  Spots ;  Eruptions  on  the  Skin  ;  Fevers ;  foul  Tongue ; 
bilious  and  bloody  Dysenteries,  and  other  atrocious  Distempers. 

But  methinks  I  hear  my  Countrymen  loudly  object,  and  say, 
"  Why  should  such  Charges  be  made  against  Beef  and  Pork,  a 
Soldier's  Diet?  We  liv'd  on  such  Fare  all  our  Days,  before  we 
came  into  the  Camp,  and  were  healthy ;  why  should  that  which 

1  Mealy.  2  Corrosive  prodticing  Putrefaction  :  Sour  or  Acid  Substances 
are  of  a  contrary  Nature. 


300  ALMANACK  FOR  1759. 

never  hurt  us  before,  be  so  dangerous  to  us  now?"  To  which  I 
Answer,  Persons  who  live  in  single  Families,  besides  a  good  Air, 
have  the  Advantages  of  Cookery  and  Cleanliness,  and  with  their 
Meat  have  much  of  the  farinacious  or  mealy  Kind  of  Substances 
to  feed  on,  and  various  acescent  vegetable  Sauces,  Apples  and 
sub-acid  Fruits,  Vinous  Drinks,  Cyder  at  least,  if  not  Wine  ;  all 
these  are  a  continual  Antidote  and  keep  the  Acid  and  Alkaline 
Salts  well  balanc'd,  in  which  Circumstance  Health  consists.  But 
when  Men  come  to  encamp  in  any  Army,  their  own  foul  Cloaths, 
the  corrupt  Air  they  Breath  in,  the  rank  putrescent  Qualities  of 
the  Meat  they  feed  on,  besides  which,  their  Summum  Bonum 
Rum,  being  dealt  out  freely ;  and  all  this  without  any  Wine, 
Ivemmons,  Cyder,  Apples,  or  Acescent  Substance,  to  make  a 
Balance  between  the  Acid  and  Alkaline  Salts  of  the  Blood,  it  is 
not  to  be  wondered,  why  so  many  are  Sick  and  Die  under  these 
Circumstances ;  it  is  a  meer  Miracle  that  any,  with  these  Errors, 
escape  Death.  The  Roman  Soldiers  mixed  Vinegar  with  their 
Water  and  found  it  healthy.  If  the  Use  of  Vegetable  and  Acid 
Things  will  cure  the  Alkaline  State  of  the  Blood,  then  what  will 
cure  will  prevent.  I  would  therefore  advise  every  Soldier,  First, 
to  keep  Clean,  that  the  foul,  rancid  Matter  lodged  in  his  Cloaths 
by  Sweat  and  Perspiration,  may  be  done  away  by  frequent 
Ablution.  Secondly,  if  no  Sauce  can  be  had  with  their  Meat, 
but  what  comes  from  the  mealy  Kind  of  Vegetable  Substances, 
let  it  be  so  managed  by  Cookery  as  to  prevent  the  use  of  Meat 
more  than  once  a  Day.  Thirdly,  if  Cyder  or  Vinegar  can  be 
procur'd,  use  it  freely  :  But  if  neither  of  them  can  be  had,  every 
Man  at  an  easy  lay,  may  procure  Sweet  Spirits  Nitre,  or  even 
Cramberries  eaten  raw,  sufficient  to  Acidulate  his  common  Drink, 
and  make  a  sort  of  artificial  Cyder,  which  will  be  found  very 
serviceable.  He  that  faces  his  Enemy  in  Defence  of  his  Country, 
and  falls  in  Battle,  lies  in  the  Bed  of  Honour :  But  as  the  Fool 
dies,  so  dies  he  that  sits  in  the  Camp  and  dies  thro'  bad  Regimen, 
and  neglects,  or  disregards  the  only  Means  of  his  Preservation. 

If  some  such  Method,  as  I  have  hinted  at,  were  prescribed  by 
Physicians,  commanded  by  the  Officers,  and  heartily  observed 
and  practiced  by  the  common  Soldiers,  some  lyives  might  be 
saved,  and  many  made  more  able  and  effective  to  answer  the 
Purposes  they  are  imployed  about. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1759- 


301 


OH  I759« — "  Grim  visag'd  war"  is  announced  in  the  open 
ing  verses,  and  in  common  with  the  Astrologic  prophet,  the  Doctor  pre 
dicts  the  advent  of  the  Comet  of  1762,  to  be  "  big  with  Fate,"  and  "por 
tentous  of  events."  The  Almanack  is  increased  in  size  this  year  to 
twenty-four  (24)  pages,  including  more  information  pro  bono  publico. 

The  muse  continues  her  extravagances  and  in  varied  form.  An  Earth 
quake  is  described ;  the  Seasons  and  their  attributes  discussed  ;  Wars  and 
Conquests  opened  to  the  vision  ;  the  marine  combat  on  Lake  George 
recorded ;  and  then  follows  a  forecast  of  the  future,  with  the  plow-share 
doing  the  work  of  the  bayonet ;  a  wail  concerning  lost  opportunities  in 
the  Ohio  country ;  then  a  return  to  the  beauties  of  agriculture,  and  the 
joys  of  rustic  life,  with  the  accompaniment  of  the  praises  of  Ceres  and 
Pomona. 

The  Essay  is  a  description  of  "  the  Solar  System"  embellished  with  a 
rude  wood-cut  showing  the  relative  positions  of  the  planets,  the  Sun,  and 
the  course  of  Comets.  The  language  of  the  Doctor  and  his  deductions 
always  make  these  articles  readable. 

The  increased  size  of  the  almanack  enables  the  author  to  give  some 
very  well-timed  and  useful  advice  to  the  army,  and  rules  concerning  the 
prevention  of  sickness  in  camp. 

The  injected  sayings  and  aphorisms,  both  witty  and  wise  are  about  of 
the  usual  quality  and  interest. 


302 


ALMANACK  FOR  1760. 


An  Aftronomical  DIARY, 
OR,  AN 


K 


For  the  Year  of  our  Lord  CHRIST 


Containing, 
TheSnh'a  and 
&Moort's  rifing 
and  letting,  —^ 
Eclipfes,  *— 
Time  of. High. 
\Vatcr,  —  Lu- 
rjitionj, —  Af- 
peftv-'-Cpurts 
Spring. Tides, 
— Jadgrhentof 
the  Weather  — 


Feafts  a 
Faftsofthe 
Church  of 


GeoerJ 
Meetfrigs- 
Roads,-— 


&£.« 


Being  BISSEXTILE  or  LEAP-YEAR 
Calculated  for  the  Meridian  of  BOSTON,  NEW- 
Latitude  42  Degrees  25  Minutes  North. 

The 'Year  of  the  Reign  of  King  GEORGE  the  Second 
begins  the  Twenty-fecond  Day  of  June. 

NATHANIEL-AME 


MARS  .like  a,  wild  Infernal  Fury  folks, 
And  marks  his  Steps  in  Blood  whereVe'  he  walks ; 
But   Feace  wpuld  frpm  her'  Native  Heav'n  defcehd, 
And  Olive -Bra'n(ih«s-  to  'the  -Nation  lend.. 


n  • 


S  Q  ^  T  Otfi 

6o)<3  by  Jo^N-DftAm,  in,  Cdrnhill"'; 
)ijNeWbiary-Sirftet:r^i^  V*  &R  us    ' 
fc  dl^4.,-lnr     »rt«iT^nt       «nd  THOMAS  & 


ALMANACK  FOR  1760.  303 

Courteous  Reader, 

Thro'  the  Kindness  of  Heaven  in  preserving  my  Life  another 
Year,  and  your  free  Acceptance  of  my  Labours  for  so  long  past, 
I  am  enabled  and  encouraged  to  present  you  with  this  my  7^/iirty- 
fifth  Almanack,  which  is  for  the  Year  1760.  By  the  Addition  of 
Half  a  Sheet  I  have  Room  to  insert  more ;  and  have  therefore 
taken  the  Planets  Places  from  the  great  Column  in  this  Alman 
ack,  and  made  an  Ephemeris  in  a  Page  by  itself,  and  set  the 
Days  observ'd  by  the  Church  of  England  in  each  monthly  Page 
according  to  the  Church  Calender: — And  as  by  inlarging  this 
Performance  I  aim  to  gratify  all  who  are  pleased  to  purchase  one 
of  my  Almanacks,  I  have  remembred  the  friendly  Sect  of  Men 
called  Quakers,  by  inserting  their  General-Meetings.  I  have 
continued  the  Table  of  Interest ; — the  Weight  and  Value  of  Gold, 
&c. — And  have  made  an  Addition  to  the  Account  of  the  several 
Stages  and  Roads,  and  have  taken  Notice  of  the  Names  and 
Distances  where  the  Persons  that  kept  Entertainment  have  been 
changed  the  Year  past.— But  besides  these  all  Things,  Reader, 
you  expect  that  I  should  tell  you  something  from  the  Stars. — 
I  tell  you  that  they  are  at  a  great  Distance  from  us,  we  know  but 
little  with  certainty  about  them ;  but  if  you  would  have  my 
Astronomical  Creed,  it  is  in  a  Word,  That  the  Stars,  which  are 
so  innumerable,  were  not  all  created  at  one  and  the  same  Time ; 
that  our  Sun,  and  the  Stars  only  that  compose  the  Copernican 
System,  were  created  when  this  Earth  was ;  and  that  they  were 
formed  from  the  Chaos  or  Matter  of  some  whole  System  that 
run  thro'  its  Period,  and  was  in  a  dissoluted  State :  and  that 
(except  the  five  Planets  which,  with  this  Earth,  compose  our 
own  System)  all  the  Stars  that  you  behold  with  your  naked  Eye, 
or  that  you  can  see  with  the  Assistance  of  Glasses,  are  so  many 
Suns  to  whole  Systems  of  Worlds,  Worlds  no  doubt  suited  to  all 
Natures,  Tastes,  and  Tempers,  aud  every  Class  of  Beings !  and 
that  the  meritorious  Part  of  the  Creation,  who  pass  their  proba 
tion  State  with  the  Supreme  Applause  will  be  received  into  some 
of  the  happy  Worlds,  where  they  will  possess  perfect  Joy  :  Where 
all  the  Errors  of  this  World  will  be  amended,  and  whatever  exists 
there,  analogous  to  this  present  State,  will  be  in  infinite  Per 
fection. 

Dedham,  Sept.  28^.  1759.  N.  Ames. 


304  ALMANACK    FOR    1760. 

Empires  conceiv'd  awhile  in  Embryo  lay 

They  sprout  and  grow  and  branching  spread  away 

Till  lopp'd  by  Time  their  aged  Trunks  decay. 

The  Book  of  Fate  contain  all  earthly  Things 

The  State  of  Kingdoms,  and  their  Race  of  Kings  : 

Th'  advent'rous  Muse  these. brazen  Leaves  unfold, 

And  future  Days  as  present  now  behold, 

Where  Powwou's  Huts  in  deep  Prostration  lies 

Temples  to  GOD  with  lofty  Spires  arise : 

On  Murder  bent  where  savage  Pagans  met — 

Majestic  Halls  of  public  Justice  set ; 

Impenetrable  Shade  keeps  off  the  Day 

Safe  haunts  for  all  the  ravenous  Beasts  of  Prey 

Where  stately  Domes  adorn  the  ample  Square 

There  sapient  Senators  inrob'd  repair ; 

And  splendid  Courts  magnificently  shine 

With  scepter'd  Heads  of  GEORGE'S  Royal  Line. 


JANUARY. 

In  Vulgar  Minds  false  Maxims  are  receiv'd, 
Laid  up  for  Truth  and  sacredly  believ'd  ; 
And  thus  in  Law,  Estates  cannot  ascend, 
For  Gold  like  Lead  does  ever  downward  tend. 
Nature  abhors  a  Vacuum  too,  they  say. 
Nature  abhors  such  Fools,  as  well  she  may ; 
For  if  Space  was  with  Plenitude  oppress'd, 
Nothing  could  move,  all  Things  would  ever  rest. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  steady  Horse  his  drunken  Rider  feels, 
And  veers  transverse  to  prop  him  as  he  reels ; 
Who  takes  the  Bowl  too  freely  at  a  Feast, 
We  say  in  scorn,  he  makes  himself  a  Beast : 
Beasts  take  no  more  than  Nature's  craving  needs ; 
Man  only  surfeits  Nature  when  he  feeds. 
The  Steed  would  tell  (could  you  him  understand) 
His  erring  Mate,  "  you  make  yourself  a  Man." 

MARCH. 

All  Second  Causes  from  the  First  proceed, 

So  no  Event  can  happen  undecreed. 

Eternal  Wisdom  all  Things  has  design'd, 

And  Heav'n  and  Earth  and  Hell  are  firmly  join'd 

By  one  vast  Chain,  whose  Links  connected  be, 

Thro'  Time  revolving  to  Eternity. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1760.  305 


APRIL. 

"  The  World's  a  Scene  of  Changes,  and  to  be 
"  Constant,  in  Nature  were  Inconstancy, 
"  For  'twere  to  break  the  Laws  herself  has  made ; 
"  Our  Substances  themselves  do  fleet  and  fade ; 
"  The  most  fix'd  Being  still  does  move  and  fly, 
"  Swift  as  the  Wings  of  Time  'tis  measur'd  by. 

MAY. 

The  L/ife  renewing  Heat  each  Flower  meets, 
Expands  its  Leaves,  and  gives  forth  all  its  sweets ; 
Touch'd  by  the  kindly  Warmth,  the  Roses  blow, 
And  liquid  Pearls  amidst  their  Fragrance  glow ; 
The  velvet  Lillies  milder  Scents  exhale, 
And  give  their  Odours  to  the  passing  Gale. 

JUNK. 

Swift  through  the  Fields  the  Peasant  takes  his  Way, 
And  pleas'd  resumes  the  Labour  of  the  Day ; 
The  feather'd  Choir  renew  their  artless  Lay, 
Wing  thro'  the  Air,  or  warble  on  the  Spray; 
These  are  thy  Works,  O  great  Creator  !  these 
Thy  Power  effects  ;  Heaven,  Earth  &  Air,  &  Seas 
Are  Thine. — 

JULY. 

Young  Fool !     for  Pleasure  sells  his  little  Wits, 
To  suck  Damnation  from  a  Strumpet's  lips  ; 
How  silly  is  the  Wretch  to  trust  the  Lass, 
That  robs  him  of  his  Nose  before  his  Face ; 
And  'tis  the  Nature  of  the  nasty  Wench, 
To  borrow  English  Coin,  but  pay  in  French. 

AUGUST. 

Custom  for  Liberty  is  still  mistook, 
And  Virtue  for  the  Fashion  is  forsook  : 
Deluded  Age,  confin'd  in  Custom's  Chain, 

Reflect and  soon  your  Liberty  regain  ; 

That  once  regained,  this  maxim  will  protect, 
Let  each  Man  act  as  Conscience  shall  direct. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Ye  idle  Fair,  who  spend  the  fleeting  Hours 

In  Trifles, Dressing,  Scandal  and  Amours  ; 

Whose  Tempers  to  the  Fashion  subject  most, 
Are  for  a  fashionable  Trifle  cross'd ; 


306  ALMANACK  FOR  1760. 

Who  in  your  formal  Visits  take  Delight, 
Seem  fond  of  one  ye  hate,  to  be  polite. 

OCTOBER. 

Meer  Slaves  to  Fashion,  and  Extremes  of  Taste, 
With  Hat  compleatly  cock'd,  and  Coat  well  lac'd ; 
Whether  your  qualities  are  good  or  ill, 
They  Judge  your  Merit  by  your  Taylor's  Bill ; 
Concluding  he  to  Wit  has  no  Pretence, 
Whose  lasting  Serge  was  bought  at  small  Bxpence. 

NOVEMBER. 

The  happy  Men  that  first  possest  this  Earth, 
Spent  their  dear  Hours  in  endless  Rounds  of  Mirth  ; 
They  claim'd  no  Titles  from  Descent  or  Blood, 
But  that  which  made  them  Noble  made  them  Good  ; 
Envy  was  not,  none  thought  themselves  opprest, 
For  every  one  what  most  he  lik'd,  possest. 

DECEMBER. 

No  snarling  Words  from  daunken  Fits  ensu'd, 
Acorns  and  Strawberries  were  all  their  Food ; 
From  painful  Cares  of  Luxury  they  fled, 
And  on  the  wholesome  Herbs  of  Nature  fed ; 
Possest  of  inward  Peace  they  eat  their  fill, 
And  drank  the  Christal  of  the  murm'ring  Rill. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Now  o'er  the  Fire  we  muse 

Of  what  we've  got,  and  what  we  have  to  lose. 

MARCH. 

A  strange  Event ! 

Which  makes  some  to  repent. 

MAY. 

What's  this  we  hear ! 

Sure  we  have  Reason  to  dread  &  fear. 

JULY. 

Must  we  for  Peace  with  dear-bought  Conquests  part, 
Conquests  that  cost  us  many  a  bleeding  Heart ! 


ALMANACK   FOR    1760. 


307 


OCTOBER. 
News  from  afar, 
Which  ends  the  War  (perhaps) 

DECEMBER. 

This  is  a  Time  for  Joy  &  Mirth 
When  we  consider  our  Saviour's  Birth ! 


ACCOUNT  of  the  present  ROYAL  FAMILY. 

GEORGE  II.  King  of  Great-Britain,  France  and  Ireland, 
&c.  His  living  Issue,  by  his  late  Queen  Caroline,  are,  i  Princess 
Amelia;  2  Prince  William,  Duke  of  Cumberland;  3  Princess 

Mary. The  Princess  Dowager  of    Wales,  Augusta,  of  Saxe 

Gotha,  born  3Oth  of  November  1719,  married  8th  of  May  1736, 
to  Frederick,  late  Prince  of  Wales. — Their  living  Issue  are, 
i  Princess  Augusta ;  2  GEORGE  Prince  of  Wales ;  3  Edward 
Augustus ,  4  William-Henry ;  5  Henry-Frederick ;  6  Louisa- 
Ann  ;  7  Frederick-William ;  8  Caroline  Matilda. 


A  TABLE  of  the  Weight 

and  Value  of  Gold. 

Coins. 

dwt.  Gr. 

Old 

Tenor. 

Lawful 

Money. 

Guinea 

5  j     9 

£•  10 

IOS. 

0</. 

£•    i 

8f. 

<*/. 

Half  Ditto 

2    !    16 

c; 

r 

o 

o 

o 

I 

O 

w 

Moidore                

6    i    22 

l-z 

IO 

o 

I 

16 

o 

Half  Ditto 

3lII 

o 
6 

I  c; 

o 

o 

18 

o 

4  Pistole  Piece  

17        8 

33 

o 
00 

0 

4 

8 

o 

Half  Ditto       -     -- 

8  !   16 

16 

IO 

o 

2 

4 

o 

Pistole    

8 

8 

o 

I 

r 

2 

o 

Half  Ditto     

. 

2 

4. 

4 

2 

6 

o 

II 

o 

Double  Johannes.  _ 

18 

T^ 

IO 

36 

OO 

o 

4 

16 

0 

Single  Ditto 

9 

5 

18 

OO 

o 

2 

8 

o 

Half  Ditto 

A 

14- 

Q 

OO 

o 

I 

o 

Quarter  Ditto  

T1 
2 

•f 

7 

4 

IO 

0 

0 

• 

12 

o 

Value  of  Gold.  Old  Tenor. 

i  Ounce  of  Gold  is £.  38      oo       o 

i  Pennyweight  of  Ditto  is._          i       18       o 
i  Grain  of  Ditto  is o         i        7 


Lawful  Money. 

£•    S         14 

0         5       i 

O  O          2 


308  ALMANACK  FOR  1760. 


Value  of  Silver.  Old  Tenor, 

i  Ounce  of  Silver  is £.     2       10       o 


Lawful  Money. 
£.  o  68 
o  04 


i  Pennyweight  of  Ditto  is  _          o         26 

i  Grain  of  Ditto  is o        o       ij- 

Spanish  mill'd  Dollars  pass  for  Six  Shillings  Lawful  Money 
and  Forty-five  Shillings  Old  Tenor,  in  Massachusetts  Bay. 

LIST  of  all  the  Crowned  Heads  in  Europe,  and  the  Names  of 
their  respective  Royal  Cities  or  Metropolis  of  each  Kingdom. 

GEORGE  II.  King  of  Great  Britain,  &c. ..London. 

Francis  Stephen,  Emperor  of  Germany  | 

Empress  Maria  Theresa,  Queen  of  Hungary.  )  " 

Lewis,  XV.  King  of  France Paris. 

Carlos  III.  King  of  Spain Madrid. 

Joseph,  King  of  Portugal Lisbon, 

Frederick,  King  of  Denmark Copenhagen, 

Adolphus  Frederick,  King  of  Sweden Stockholm. 

Augustus,  King  of  Poland Warsaw. 

Charles  Frederick,  King  of  Prussia Berlin- 

Elizabeth,  Empress  of  Russia Petersburg. 

King  Stanislaus,  Duke  of  Lorrain  and  Barr 

Charles  Emanuel,  King  of  Sardinia Turin. 

Osman,  Sultan  of  Turkey Constantinople, 

Besides  a  Number  of  Princes,  Dukes,  &c.,  who 
govern  Republicks,  Provinces,  &c. 


AMES,  1760. 


On   the   Reduction   of  QUEBEC,    Sept.   18,    1759,   by   General 
WOLFE  and  the  brave  Troops  under  his  Command  &c. 

Important  is  the  Cause.     All  British  Hearts 
'Twixt  Hope  and  Fear  expect  the  Grand  Event : 
The  Seed  of  Jacob  send  their  Souls  to  Heav'n 
In  fervent  Prayers :  The  Lord  of  Hosts  attends, 
Attends  the  Cries  of  wrestling  Jacob's  Sons  : 
And  Heav'n  designs  Success.     The  winged  Hosts 
Quick  at  th'  Almighty's  Nod,  bend  round  his  Throne, 
Ready  to  hear  his  Will,  nor  less  dispos'd 
To  execute  his  great  Commands  on  Earth. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1760.  309 

"  Behold  on  yonder  Earth,  the  British  Troops, 
"  True  to  their  GOD,  and  valiant  for  their  King, 
"  Compell'd  to  Arms  by  Gallic  Perjury, 
"  Led  forth  by  WOLFE,  the  generous  and  the  brave : 
"  Oppress'd  AMERICA  their  Succour  claims  ; 
"  CANADA  to  demolish  is  the  Plan  ; 
"  Under  th'  auspicious  Smiles  of  Heav'n  the  Plan 
"  Was  laid,  and  hitherto  Success  has  gain'd  ; 
"  But  yet  the  grand  decisive  Scene  remains 
"  To  be  attempted ;  and  Success  therein 
"  Cannot  be  gain'd  by  Power  merely  human  : 
"  Why  should  the  sadden'd  British  Troops  withdraw 
"  With  Victory  lialf-gain'd,  and  glad  the  Hearts 
"  Of  haughty  Papal  Power :  And  so  at  last 
"  A  Conquest  lose  for  want  of  Man  for  Man  ? 
"  Better  that  I  with  my  peculiar  Aid 
"  Cause  the  few  Heroes  Multitudes  to  Chace, 
"  So  that  the  Conqu'ror's  and  the  Conquer'd  both 
"  May  see  niy  Hand,  and  own  a  Power  Divine. 

He  said :  And  all  th'  Angelick  Souls  benign 
Their  Approbation  smil'd,  and  humbly  bow'd. 

"  Then  Wing  your  Course  to  Earth  "  th'  ETERNAL  said, 

"  Nor  loiter  by  the  Way ;  haste  to  the  Help 

"  Of  English  Troops  :  But  those  of  Gaul  confound! 

"  The  English  Hearts,  now  bold,  still  bolder  make, 

"  Bid  them  dismiss  their  Fears,  and  trust  in  God, 

"  Whose  is  the  Cause,  and  whose  to  give  Success. 

"  Into  the  Mind  of  WOLFE,  Heroic  Man  ! 

"  A  Ray  of  Wisdom  dart,  more  than  Human, 

"  That  he  with  Skill  Divine  may  lay  the  Plan 

"  To  gain  the  Conquest  o're  his  numerous  Foes ; 

"  And  his  fir'd  Breast  with  ten-fold  Ardor  fire, 

"  To  lead  the  Van,  and  crush  the  Rebel  Throng. 

"  And  then  bid  Fear  and  Darkness  fill  the  Souls, 

"  The  Savage  Souls,  of  proud  Canadian  Bands ; 

"  What  Valour  still  remains  let  be  ill-tim'd, 

"  Let  ill-tim'd  Confidence  their  Ruin  bring. — 
These  great  Commands  sink  deep  in  every  Breast 
Of  the  attending  Spirits  round  the  Throne  ; 
They  spread  their  Wings  with  Pleasure  to  obey, 
And  thro'  the  trackless  Path  of  Liquid  Air, 
Pursue  their  rapid  Course,  nor  miss  their  Way : 
Not  otherwise  than  flaming  Balls  of  Fire, 
Bursting  from  Clouds  with  hoarse  tremendous  Roar 
Stream  swiftly  down,  and  shake  the  trembling  Ground. 


3io  ALMANACK  FOR  1760. 

Malignant  Spirits  which  frequent  the  Air, 
And  croud  these  Lower  Regions,  full  of  Spite, 
Observe  these  bright  Ambassadors  from  Heav'n, 
Guess  their  Design,  and  wish  to  stop  their  Course  : 
But  (Thanks  to  Heav'n)  their  Malice  is  confin'd. 
They  only  shew  that  they  belong  to  Hell. 
Heav'ns  Messengers  fly  thro'  the  wakeful  Camps, 
And  spread  their  Influence  thro'  the  Breasts  of  all 
Who  give  Commands,  and  who  Commands  obey; 
Add  Wisdom  to  the  Wise,  Strength  to  the  Strong, 
Zeal  to  the  Zealous,  Courage  to  the  Brave, 
And  so  enliven  all ;  but  yet,  as  bidden, 
Mainly  attend  to  WOLFE,  the  noble  CHIEF. 
Greaten  his  Soul,  (his  Soul  was  great  before,) 
Extend  his  Views,  before  extended  far, 
And  warm  his  manly  Soul  with  fresh  Desire 
To  gain  the  long  wish'd  Viclory  :  At  once 
To  add  new  Conquests  to  the  British  Arms, 
New  Territories  to  the  British  Crown, 
And  'venge  the  Wrongs  done  to  her  peaceful  Sons : 
He  meditates  great  Things ;  all  Possibles 
Ope  to  his  Mind :  He  knows  what  can  be  done, 
And  burns  to  execute  the  deep-laid  Scheme, 
Tho'  conscious  of  the  Danger  to  himself. 

Himself  he  views  a  Point,  when  in  compare 
With  that  great  CAUSE  in  which  he  is  engag'd, 
He's  Hero,  Patriot,  Politician,  All : 
These  drink  up  all  his  Soul,  he  has  no  Self. 

And  now  the  great  decisive  Morning  dawns 
When  proud  QUEBEC  must  fall ;  and  WOLFE  immortal, 
Borne  on  the  Wings  of  Fame,  quit  this  dull  Earth, 
To  dwell  in  Realms  above.     All  British  Hearts 
Grow  warm,  their  Blood  beats  high  in  every  Vein, 
The  noble  Chief  gives  forth  his  wise  Commands, 
They're  all  Attention,  and  with  dauntless  Hearts 
March  forth  to  meet  the  Foe  in  hidious  Fight. 
The  Armies  now  advance  in  dread  Array, 
The  glitt'ring  Shields  give  and  return  the  Blaze ; 
Serenely  WOLFE  leads  on  his  trusty  Few 
To  meet  a  tripple  Force :  He  calmly  gives 
His  Orders ;  while  the  dusky  Horrors  rise, 
With  blazing  Confidence  the  Foes  rush  on, 
And  with  quick  Vollies  hurl  the  leaden  Showers, 
Which  thrice  the  British  Troops  bravely  sustain, 


ALMANACK  FOR  1760.  311 

And  then  with  double  Force  return  the  Fire, 

Which  spreads  a  wild  Destruction  all  around : 

Stunn'd  at  the  Blow  the  yielding  Squadrons  break, 

And  then  in  dire  Amazement  basely  fly ; 

While  Britain's  Sons  pursue  with  noble  Rage, 

Renew  the  Charge  with  wide  destroying  Balls, 

And  wield  with  Skill  the  dire  avenging  Sword, 

Whose  steely  Blade  its  horrid  Circles  cuts. 

WOLFE,  where  the  Combat  mow'd  the  falling  Ranks, 

Nobly  serene  enjoy'd  the  raging  War. 

Come  on,  Come  on,  the  valiant  Leader  cries ! 

The  Day  is  our's,  the  Day  is  our's  !  But  oh  ! 

(Heav'n  so  permits — what  loyal  Hearts  don't  Bleed !) 

A  fatal  Ball  soon  plough'd  its  angry  Course 

His  Body  thro',  and  stretch'd  him  on  the  Strand ; 

And  yet  with  bleeding  Wounds,  and  shatter'd  Voice, 

He  cries  Pursue,  Pursue,  my  Lads,  pursue ! 

Now  Victory  and  Heav'n  divide  his  Mind, 

And  each  alternate  claim  his  dying  Cares 

Till  Victory's  secur'd ;  And  then  in  Peace 

He  breaths  his  noble  Soul  into  the  Arms 

Of  Guardian  Angels,  who  with  Joy  convey 

It  to  the  Realms  of  Cloudless  Day  above. 

O  WOLFE !  immortal  Hero,  tho'  now  fall'n 

Thy  Name  shall  live  for  ever  in  our  Breasts. 

Shall  We,  or  envy  or  condole  thy  Fate  ? 

Like  him  of  Gaza,  conqu'ring  in  thy  Fall 

Gaining  the  greatest  Victory  at  thy  Death. 


on  1760.— The  title  page  this  year  is  embellished  with  a 
rude  cut  of  the  Zodiac  surrounded  by  ideal  figures  of  the  four  Seasons. 
War  with  all  its  pomp  and  circumstance,  with  Mars  in  command  with  his 
baneful  influence,  is  poetically  described  in  the  opening  verse,  and  Peace 
as  briefly,  but  not  as  forcibly  alluded  to. 

The  inconveniences  of  being  popular,  and  being  the  author  of  a  popu 
lar  publication  are  thoroughly  experienced  by  the  Doctor  this  year,  in 
which  occurs  quite  a  "  cotillion,"  caused  by  the  action  of  the  printers  of 
the  Almanack  1759  (see  Note  p.  289)  in  declining  to  furnish  copies  to  the 
booksellers. 

There  being  no  copyright  law  in  the  Colonies,  the  booksellers  engaged 
a  printer  named  Kneeland,  stole  the  copy  after  publication  by  Dr.  Ames' 
printers,  and  issued  on  their  own  account. 

Not  content  with  absolute  robbery,  these  pirates  boldly  announced 
their  production  as  the  "  Hd.  Edition,  Price,  2  Pistareens  per  Dozen,  5 


312  ALMANACK  FOR  1760. 

Coppers  single.  Corrected  from  the  Mistakes  and  Blunders  of  those 
printed  by  some  of  the  PRINTERS  of  Boston."  Then  to  add  insult  to  in 
jury  they  (the  booksellers)  appended  : 

"  N.  B.  As  some  of  the  Printers  of  the  Town  of  Boston  seem  deter- 
min'd  to  impose  on  the  Publick  : — This  is  to  inform,  that  to  the  great 
Abuse  of  Dr.  Ames,  and  the  Publick,  they  have  printed  Almanacks  for 
1760  &  affix'd  the  Doctor's  name  to  the  same,  that  differ  in  a  scandalous 
Manner,  and  can  by  no  Means  be  depended  on :  and  that  great  Care  has 
been  taken  to  correct  this  Edition,  from  the  Errors  they  have  made  in 
said  Almanacks  : — We  also  desire  the  Public  to  beware  they  are  not  im- 
pos'd  on  by  giving  an  Extravagant  Price  for  said  Almanacks." 

This  the  Doctor  replied  to  as  followeth : — 

FROM  THE  BOSTON  GAZETTE,  JUNE  14,  1760. 

In  a  Connecticut  Paper  was  Advertised  Almanacks  for  1760,  with  my 
Name  thereto,  to  be  sold  by  some  of  the  Booksellers  in  Boston ;  and  also 
some  to  be  sold  at  New  Haven,  at  the  low  price  of  Two  Shillings  per  Dozen  : 
and  having  seen  some  of  them  in  Boston ;  it  appears  that  said  Almanack 
is  a  notorious  Cheat  and  Imposition ;  The  Chief  Design  was,  (as  given  out 
by  some  who  had  Honor,  Honesty  and  ingenuity  enough  to  assist  in 
Counterfeiting)  to  destroy  the  Credit  my  Almanack  had  gained,  and  pre 
vent  its  having  such  Credit  for  the  future :  To  which  Purpose  they  have 
Endeavoured  to  render  my  performance  as  despicable  as  possible,  by 
omitting  the  Preface,  Ephemeris,  Verses,  &c.  also  what  is  of  Service, 
Interest  Tables,  Value  of  Coin,  the  several  Roads  and  Stages :  and  further 
to  make  me  appear  still  more  Contemptible  omitted  AI,I,  the  Week  Days 
in  the  whole  Year,  and  above  50  Days  in  the  Months,  and  fixed  in  some 
places  the  wrong  Dominical  Letter :  Surely  such  Conduct  is  to  the  last 
Degree,  Base ! 

fflJtT'  I  therefore  advertise  again,  That  those  Almanacks  printed  in 
Boston  from  my  Copy  have  the  Printers  name  thereto,  and  none  others : 
And  I  hope  that  the  Defence  of  my  Reputation,  in  thus  advertising,  which 
at  this  Time  seems  necessary,  will  be  a  sufficient  Apology  to  my  Country 
men,  whose  Good  I  seek,  and  on  whose  Good-will  I  depend. 

Boston,  Jan.  8,  1760.  Nathaniel  Ames. 

The  recorded  "pirated"  editions  published  previous  to  this  date,  and 
during  the  lifetime  of  the  author,  bore  the  following  imprints  :  1757  New 
England;  1758-59,  New  Haven:  J.  Parker  &  Company  ;  1764,  "Printing 
office  New  Haven  /"  1765,  "  Reprinted  New  London.  Timothy  Green" 

In  his  address  to  the  Reader  in  the  Almanack  for  1760,  the  Author 
rehearses  the  advantages  of  the  increased  size  of  the  Almanack ;  remem 
bers  "  the  friendly  Sect  of  Men  called  Quakers,"  etc.,  etc.,  closing  with  an 
allusion  to  that  "  happy  World  "  where  all  errors  typographical  and  other 
wise  will  be  amended. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1761.  313 

The  accession  to  the  throne  of  George  the  Third,  is  celebrated  in  heroic 
verse,  and  in  the  monthly  lines,  Temperance,  Truth,  Cause  and  Effect, 
Inconstancy,  Folly  and  its  punishment,  Liberty  and  Custom,  Idleness, 
fashion,  and  the  Pre-historic  man,  are  all  attended  to  in  the  Doctor's  usual 
method. 

Then  follows  an  Account  of  the  Royal  Family,  and  contemporary  rulers, 
with  their  postoffice  addresses ;  concluding  the  annual  production  in  an 
heroic  elegy  in  blank  verse  on  the  "Death  of  the  Immortal  Wolfe." 

As  might  well  be  surmised,  the  humor  for  this  month  is  well  nigh 
dissipated  by  the  presence  of  more  important  serious  matters. 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1761. 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 


BOSTON :  Printed  by  JOHN  DRAPER,  in  Cornhill ;  RICHARD  DRAPER  in 
Newbury-Street ;  GREEN  &  RussEW,,  &  EDES  &  GiUv  in  Queen-Street : 
and  THOMAS  &  JOHN  Fi,EET,  at  the  Heart  and  Crown  in  Cornhill. 


Great  Alexander,  who  the  World  had  won, 
Sat  down  and  wept  when  all  his  Work  was  done. 
AMHERST  with  Glory  triumphs  o'er  his  Foes, 
And  rests  for  want  of  Countries  to  oppose. 
CANADA  conquer'd !  Can  the  News  be  true  ! 
Inspir'd  by  Heav'n  what  cannot  Britons  do. 
The  News  with  Haste  to  listning  Nations  tell, 
How  Canada,  like  ancient  Carthage,  fell. 


Kind  READER. 

The  Motions  and  various  Appearances  of  the  Planets  were 
brought  to  Rule  and  Order,  by  viewing  the  Heavens  with  the 
greatest  Precision  and  Accuracy  ;  every  one  improving  upon  the 
Observation  of  his  Predecessor,  until  all  the  Phenomena  were 
compleatly  gathered  ;  and  then  applying  Geometry  and  Numbers 

JThe  Almanack  for  1761  was  issued  Nov.  i,  1760,  to  prevent  the  "  pirates  " 
from  deriving  any  advantage  by  reason  of  an  earlier  publication. 


314  ALMANACK    FOR    1761. 

to  investigate  their  Orbits,  their  Distances,  the  Laws  of  their 
Motion,  their  Natures,  and  their  Causes :  By  these  Means 
Astronomy  has  been  brought  to  great  Perfection  :  Nevertheless 
to  bring  some  Points  in  this  sublime  Art  to  a  yet  greater  Degree 
of  Perfection  the  curious  and  learned  Mathematicians  of  this 
Age  expect  a  curious  Phenomenon  the  sixth  day  of  June,  this 
present  Year  1761 :  I  mean  the  Transit  of  the  Planet  Venus  over 
the  Disk  of  the  SUN.  His  Majesty  has  granted  a  Sum  of  Money 
to  the  Royal  Society  in  London  to  send  proper  Persons  to  St. 
Helena  and  Bencoolon,  and  also  to  Hudson's  Bay ;  The  French 
King  has  sent  one  of  the  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences  to  Pondi- 
cherry,  in  the  East  Indies  ;  the  Academy  of  Petersburg  to  Siberia, 
that  this  curious  Appearance  may  be  accurately  observed  from 
these  different  and  distant  Parts  of  the  Earth  at  the  same  real 
Moment  of  Time. 

With  the  other  Things  as  usual  in  this  Performance,  I  have 
continued  and  added  to  the  Account  of  the  Roads  and  Houses  of 
Public  Entertainment,  and  observed  the  Alterations  that  have 
been  made  (according  to  the  Information  of  Travellers)  since  my 
last.  I  have  also  added  the  Table  of  the  Value  of  Coins  currant 
in  the  several  Provinces :  and  to  prevent  these  Things  from 
growing  stale  and  unentertaining,  I  have  Wrote  a  word  or  two 
on  those  Subjects,  that  there  may  be  the  Appearance  of  Novelty, 
where  almost  the  same  Things  are  repeated. — There  is  added  to 
this  last  Table,  the  Value  of  Grains  of  Gold  and  Silver  in  Old 
Tenor,  from  one  Grain  to  a  Pennyweight,  very  handy  in  this 
Province.  I  have  likewise  given  a  Page  for  a  Table  of  the 
Difference  of  apparent  and  true  Time,  for  every  other  Day  in  the 
Year. 

The  disarming  the  SMALL-POX  of  its  Malignity  and  Danger  is 
a  Matter  of  great  Importance.  Some  at  this  Day  affirm  they 
have  found  this  great  Secret :  If  what  I  have  wrote  on  this  Sub 
ject  might  stir  up  the  Ingenious  to  make  due  Inquiry  into  this 
Affair,  and  refute  or  confirm  the  Pretensions  of  these  Gentlemen, 
it  will  answer  some  good  Purpose. 

With  the  Assistance  of  the  Muses  I  have  attempted  to  deco 
rate  the  Almanack  this  Year  with  Poetry  of  my  own  composing, 
except  the  Lines  at  the  Top  of  the  Eclipse-Page,  which  were 
sent  me  after  the  Copy  was  sent  to  the  Press.  NATH.  AMKS. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1761.  315 

To  thee,  great  GOD,  thro'  whose  indulgent  Care, 

We  view  the  Dawning  of  another  Year, 

Our  annual  Song,  inflam'd  with  IvOve,  shall  rise, 

Grateful  as  Incense,  curling  to  the  Skies. 

Still,  may  thy  guardian  Providence  protect, 

Sweeten  our  Days,  and  all  our  Paths  direct : 

Inspir'd  by  firm  Religion's  sacred  Pow'r, 

May  noble  Acts  illumine  ev'ry  Hour : 

So  when  L/ife  fades,  to  Heav'n  our  Souls  shall  wing, 

Those  blooming  Regions  of  immortal  Spring. 


The  Foreign  Vintage  rival'd  by  the  Gardens  of  America :  Or,  A 
Receipt  to  make  Wine  as  good  as  most  that  is  imported,  and 
much  cheaper. 

A  proper  Receipt  to  make  Currant    Wine. 

To  a  Gallon  of  Currants,  a  Gallon  of  Water,  mash  them,  and 
strain  the  Liquor  from  them,  and  to  every  Gallon  of  Liquor  put 
two  Pounds  and  three  Quarters  of  good  Brown  Sugar :  Put  it  in 
a  tight  Cask,  and  let  it  stand  three  or  four  Days,  that  it  may 
Work,  with  the  Bung  out ;  then  bung  it  up,  and  it  will  be  fit  to 
drink  by  Christmas. 

A  Divine  ought  to  calculate  his  Sermon,  and  an  Astronomer 
his  Almanack,  to  the  Meridian  of  the  Place  &  People  where 
they  live. 

Names,  Characters,  Explanation  and  Use  of  the  Five  Aspects. 

ASPECT  signifies  the  Situation  of  the  Planets  and  Stars,  in 
Respect  of  each  other.  Of  these  we  commonly  reckon  five 
different  Sorts,  viz.: 

c/  Conjunction,  when  they  are  both  in  the  same  degree. 

o°  Opposition,  when  they  are  180  Degrees  distant. 

D  Quartile,  when  they  are  90  Degrees  distant  from  each  other. 

A  Trine,  is  when  they  are  distant  120  Degrees. 

^  Sextile,  is  when  two  Planets,  or  Stars,  are  60  Deg.  distant. 

Names  and  Characters  of  the  Signs,  and  Planets. 
T  Aries     tt  Taurus      U  Gemini     ®  Cancer     &  Leo     1XP  Virgo 


316  ALMANACK  FOR  1761. 

—Libra    Tit  Scorpio      T^  Sagitarius      Vj  Capricorn      «« Aquarius 
X  Pisces. 

©  Sun  T?  Saturn  2i  Jupiter  c?  Mars  9  Venus  §  Mercury 
€D  3  Moon  Q>  Dragon's  Head  £3  Dragon's  Tail  0  Earth. 
One  Star  differeth  from  another  Star  in  Glory. — The  most 
glorious  is  the  Planet  VENUS,  and  she  is  our  Evening  Star  to 
the  6th  of  June,  thence  she  reigns  Queen  of  the  Morning  till 
the  End  of  the  Year  1761. 


JANUARY. 

The  Eye,  surprizing  Instrument  of  Sight ! 
Within  whose  Orb  reflected  Rays  of  Light 
Transcribe  the  Image  of  external  Things, 
And  Notice  to  the  Mind  immediate  brings, 
From  the  vast  Range  of  distant  Stars  and  Skies, 
And  various  beauteous  Landscapes  as  they  rise. 

FEBRUARY. 

Nor  less  than  GOD  planted  the  curious  Ear 
Whose  winding  Porch  collects  the  trembling  Air, 
Sonorous  Cave  !  from  Bends  and  Hollows  come 
The  speaking  Echoes  on  the  sounding  Drum, 
Where  living  Cords  impress  the  ready  Mind, 
And  raise  the  Man  above  the  brutal  Kinds. 

MARCH. 

.          The  Sense  of  Feeling  on  the  Frontiers  stands, 
|>     •<    With  Scouts  and  Guards  on  Finger's  Ends  and  Hands 
Nervous  Detachments,  Legions  on  the  skin 
To  warn  of  Dangers  e're  it  comes  within. 
From  the  keen  Nerve  to  the  numb  Heel  the  Touch 
Nor  thrills  the  Part  too  feebly  nor  too  much. 

APRII,. 
The  Smell  dispatches  Couriers  to  the  Mind 


With  such  Advice  as  Sight  has  left  behind, 

The  station'd  Sweets,  that  hover  round  the  Rose 

Unseen,  are  yet  detected  by  the  Nose : 

And  yet  for  great  Segacity  of  Smell 

Some  Beasts  the  Man  for  Keeness  far  excell : 

An  old  experienc'd  hunting  Hound  kept  back, 

Where  Thousands  step,  will  find  his  Master's  Track. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1761.  317 

MAY. 

The  Taste's  commission'd  to  discuss  the  Food, 

And  make  Report  whether  'tis  bad  or  good : 
,    The  Mouth  to  hold  this  Office  is  ordain'd, 
^      (    That  nothing  there  might  pass  but  what  has  gain'd 
j    A  Passport  with  the  greatest  Scrutiny 
(.   Upon  it's  pleasing  wholesome  Quality. 

JUNE. 

Knowledge  which  has  from  others  Senses  flown 
The  Use  of  Speech  appropriates  to  my  own  ; 
This  Art  conveys  the  Secrets  of  the  Breast, 
This !  favours  Man  so  much  above  the  Beast. 
The  Voice  in  Speech  so  artful  strikes  the  Ear, 
That  we  thereby  the  very  Thoughts  do  hear. 


When  the  yEtherial  Blue  with  Clouds  is  spread, 
And  dormcnt  Lightnings  hover  over  Head ; 
Soon  as  the  Flash  has  launch'd  the  livid  Flame, 
It  darts  and  burns  along  th'  electric  Train, 
The  dire  Explosion  leaves  the  light'ned  Air, 
To  shine  in  cool  Serenity  and  Fair. 

AUGUST. 

Th'  aspiring  Hills,  from  whose  steep  craggy  Sides, 
The  gath'ring  Mist  in  humid  murmuring  glides, 
These  Stores  reserv'd  the  running  Stream  befriends, 
Whose  constant  Flow  the  bub'ling  Fountain  spends. 
Let  Hills  and  Mists  withhold  their  kind  Supply, 
Brooks  fail  and  leave  their  o'ozy  Channels  dry. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Now  Nature  paints  her  Colours !.  Blue  and  Green, 

On  the  high  Arch  and  ample  Carpet  seen, 

Make  up  the  Ground  of  Nature's  wond'rous  Piece 

Where  perfect  Pictures  mingling  intersperse  ; 

The  golden  Stars  on  saphire  Pavements  glow 

And  ardent  Hues  adorn  the  Scene  below, 

Nor  in  too  strong  Exuberance  of  Light 

Fatigue,  but  please,  and  chear  the  approving  Sight, 

OCTOBER. 

The  temperate  Man  enjoys  the  most  Delight, 
For  Riot  dulls  and  palls  the  Appetite, 


318  ALMANACK  FOR  1761. 

Excess  shuts  out  true  Relish  from  the  Soul, 
And  does  the  Pleasures  ev'n  of  Taste  controul ; 
Such  keen  Delights  from  Abstinence  proceed, 
That  Temp'rance  is  true  Luxury  indeed. 

NOVEMBER. 

When  Sol  descends  a  down  the  Midnight  Way, 
The  Atmosphere  holds  up  the  falling  Day  ; 
And  so  the  Morn  with  Blushes  paints  the  East 
To  entertain  the  rising  princely  Guest. 
But  for  this  kind  Refraction  of  the  Light 
Sudden  would  flash  the  Day  and  rush  the  Night. 

DECEMBER. 

The  Atmosphere  Soi/s  gentle  Heat  retains, 
Broods  on  the  Earth  in  gentle  Dews  and  Rains ; 
'  Tis  this  kind  Vest  that  keeps  our  Planet  warm, 
Defends  her  numerous  Progeny  from  Harm, 
While  Mountain  Tops  lie  chill'd  in  Frost  and  Snow, 
Where  Flowers  and  Fruits  adorn  their  Slopes  below. 

The  Contented  FARMER. 

I  eat,  drink,  and  sleep,  and  do  what  I  please, 
The  King  in  his  Palace  can  only  do  these. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

Their  Light  lessen'd,  their  Strength  &  Glory  abated. 

A  Discovery  of  secret  &  cunning  Devices. 

By  missing  the  Good  expected,  an  Evil  unthought  of,  is  prevented. 

FEBRUARY. 

Blind  Fortune  from  her  Tree  lets  drop,  Discord  &  Trouble  on  some, 
but  Mirth,  Wealth  and  Pleasure  on  others. 

Nature  operates  vigorously  in  the  Production  of  Cold  or  Wet. 

We  shall  soon  reap  the  Fruits  of  Peace :  or  new  Incidents  will  embroil 
the  War  afresh. 

Give  me  this  Week  for  Elbow-room  to  guess  in  and  I'll  promise  wet 
enough. 

MARCH. 

High  Matters  transacted  with  Fear  &  Care. 
One  hopes  for  Good  but  misses  it. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1761.  319 

APRIL. 

News  of  Importance  ! 

A  righteous  man  (more  excellent  than  his  Neighbour)  slandered  because 
he  cannot  be  corrupted. 

MAY. 

Some  Men  like  the  Planets  stir  up  &  influence  smoaky  thick  air. 
Behold  a  Man  vexed  and  Fearful. 

Husbandry  is  the  Philosopher's  Stone  which  turns  Trees,  Fruits,  Barth, 
Iron  &  Water  into  Gold. 

GENERAL  ELECTION.     Happy  Privileges  ! 

JUNE. 

Nature's  Apparatus  being  prepared,  the  Grand  Electric  Fire  plays  uiar- 
velously  in  the  Night. 

JULY. 

Slander  should  think  of  Memory  and  Chalk. 

Saturn  sheds  malignant  Influence  on  Monks,  Fryars  and  Jesuits. 
How  pleasant  is  the  Draught  of  modern   Punch  this  sultry  Weather  ? 
It  is  reviving. 

AUGUST. 

Live  temperate  and  defy  the  Physician. 

The  Consideration  of  Utopian  Schemes  are  adjourned  till  Winter. 

Hempen  Cravats  will  come  more  and  more  into  Fashion. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Now  the  Infirm  grow  more  unhealthy,  but  the  Alert  perform  many 
short  Journeys  with  Pleasure  about  this  Time. 

The  Farmer  and  Labourer  have  had  a  day ;  Attornies,  Clerks  and 
Scribes  have  a  Time  to  come. 

OCTOBER. 

Old  Men  are  in  danger  of  dying,  and  old  Buildings  of  falling. 

The  three  Doctors,  Diet,  Quiet  and  Temperance  are  the  best  Physicians. 

NOVEMBER. 

Make  due  Preparation  for  an  unwelcome  Guest. 

Some  are  influenc'd  by  the  Dragon's  Head  and  some  by  his  Tail. 

DECEMBER. 

A  Son  of  Mars  from  War  does  come 
and  War  proclaims  anew  at  Home. 
May  all  your  Pleasures  last,  and  Pains  end  with  this  Year  that's  past. 


320  ALMANACK  FOR  1761. 

Of  different  COINS. 

The  Germans,  because  of  their  Easterly  Dwelling  from  the 
English,  were  called  Esterlings,  some  of  whom  Dwelling  in 
England,  first  of  all  stamp'd  a  pure  Coin,  which  from  them  was 
called  Esterling  Money  ;  and  now  leaving  out  the  initial  Letter 
E,  it  is  called  Sterling-  Money  at  this  Day. — Queen  Elizabeth 
called  in  all  the  base  Coin  of  her  Predecessors ;  since  which 
Time  nothing  but  Sterling  Money  passes ;  except  for  the  Neces 
sity  of  the  Poor,  Permission  is  given  for  coining  Copper  into 
English  Farthings  and  Half  Pence,  which  are  not  a  Tender  for 
Rent  and  Debt.  The  Pound,  Shilling,  and  Pence,  of  different 
Nations  differ  in  Value ;  thus,  an  English  Penny  is  a  Scottish 
Shilling ;  The  Hebrew  Talent  in  Silver  is  ^375,  in  Gold  ^4500. 

Artiabalipa  King  of  Peru  (being  taken  by  the  Spaniards  who 
conquered  his  Country)  pay'd  for  his  Ranson  Ten  Million  Three 
Hundred  and  Twenty-Six  Thousand  Ducats  in  Gold ;  neverthe 
less  the  Spaniards  after  they  had  got  his  Money,  put  him  to 
Death.  The  Priests,  after  having  described  Heaven  and  Hell  to 
him,  told  him  they  would  pardon  his  Sins,  and  he  should  go  to 
Heaven  :  He  asked  if  the  Spaniards  went  there  ?  The  Priest 
answered,  Yes :  Then,  says  the  poor  Peruvian,  I  will  go  to  the 
other  Place. 

Of  the  SMALL-POX. 

The  SMAU>POX  is  an  Eruption  of  Pustles  on  the  Skin  of  a 
determinate  shape  &  Nature,  that  in  a  certain  Space  of  Time 
become  purulent  Abscesses,  containing  Puss  of  a  Malignant 
Nature.  A  Person  cannot  be  infected  with  this  terrible  Distem 
per  by  an  Epidemic  Constitution  of  the  Air,  or  State  of  the 
Blood  &  Juices  favouring  the  same,  without  the  putrid  Effluvia 
of  the  Variolus  Pus  of  the  diseased  Person  be  received  into  the 
Blood  and  Juices  of  the  Person  that  is  infecfted, — And  this  Dis 
temper  so  produced  is  capable  of  being  propagated  from  Indi 
vidual  to  Individual  (a  few  rare  Instances  excepted)  till  the  whole 
Race  of  Men  throughout  the  World  would  have  it,  if  they  did 
not  keep  out  of  the  Way  of  the  Infection. 

If  I  conjecture  right,  this  subtil  Virus  or  the  Effluvia,  from 
the  Abscesses  of  the  diseased  Person,  being  received  iuto  the 
Blood  and  Juices  of  the  Person  infected,  by  some  Fermentation 


ALMANACK  FOR  1761.  321 

or  Mechanic  Operation,  changes  the  Figure  &  Magnitude  of  a 
certain  Set  of  Salts  in  the  Blood ;  which  Salts,  being  thus 
altered,  become  like  so  many  exotick  Bodies,  or  to  speak  famili 
arly,  like  the  Points  of  Thorns  broke  off  in  the  Flesh,  and  there 
upon  become  incompatible  with  a  State  of  Rest,  Ease  &  Health; 
and  Nature  takes  the  same  Method  for  their  Expulsion,  viz.  by 
raising  as  many  Phlegmons  as  there  are  Bodies,  or  Clusters  of 
Bodies,  to  be  expelled.  And  from  this  Theory  all  the  Phenomena 
of  this  Distemper  ma}'  be  solved. 

As  to  the  Cure. 


WHOEVER  considers  the  Nature  of  Mercury ;  its  wonderfull 
Effects  &  Operations  on  the  Humane  Body,  it's  Minuteness  and 
Gravity,  the  Sphericity  of  its  Particles,  and  their  Power  to  break 
and  divide  the  Corrosiveness  and  Pointedness  of  the  Salts  in  the 
Blood,  to  render  those  Liquors  of  the  Body  innocent  and  harm 
less,  that  otherwise  would  be  deadly  and  noxious. —  I  say  who 
considers  these  Things  must  allow  that  Mercury  is  the  best 
Medicine  to  prevent  the  Dangers  arising  from  the  Small- Pox : 
The  Blood  assisted  by  any  considerable  Quantity  of  Mercury,  to 
that  of  the  Blood  unassisted,  to  remove  an  Obstruction,  will  be  as 
3000  to  i :  This  has  been  proved  by  Doct.  Cheyne,  in  his  new 
Theory  of  Fevers  :  But  this  Mercury  must  be  apply'd  for  the 
cleansing  the  Constitution  before  the  Disease  attacks,  otherwise 
it  will  no  more  avail  than  an  Engine  would  to  extinguish  Fire  in 
a  Dwelling  that  was  filled  with  combustible  Matter ;  and  if  the 
Body  be  rightly  prepared,  I  conceive  it  is  not  much  Matter  which 
Way  the  Distemper  be  received,  whether  by  Inoculation,  or  the 
Natural  Way.  Many  have  lately  practiced  Inoculation  with 
surprizing  success ;  and  by  their  Preparation  of  the  Body  have 
lightened  the  Distemper  to  almost  nothing;  some  Practitioners 
from  selfish  Views  make  a  great  Secret  of  the  Method,  whereby 
they  prepare  their  Patients ;  but  their  whole  Dependence  is  on 
Calomel  or  some  Preparation  of  Mercury  ;  and  no  doubt  it  may 
be  assisted  by  some  other  Medicines ;  but  after  all,  the  right 
Preparation  of  the  Body  for  this  Distemper  caunot  be  performed 
by  ignorant  Quacks  :  For  the  free  Use  of  Mercury  in  such  Hands, 
would  be  as  dangerous  as  the  Small-Pox  itself. 


322  ALMANACK    FOR    1761. 

Cleansing  of  a  House. 

WHERE  the  Small-Pox  has  been  in  a  House,  to  cleanse  the 
same,  so  that  the  Person  who  moved  out  for  fear  of  the  Infection, 
may  return  in  safety,  Dodl.  Hales  recommends  this  Method,  viz. 
Let  the  Feather-Beds  be  lain  hollow  on  Chairs  turned  down,  and 
some  of  the  Blankets  being  nailed  before  the  Chimneys  to  prevent 
the  Fumes  escaping,  and  the  rest  of  them  being  nailed  unfolded 
against  the  Walls,  and  all  the  Drawers  &  Boxes  set  open ;  then 
four  or  more  Pounds  of  Brimstone  being  laid  on  Wood-Ashes  in 
an  Iron  Pot  or  Pots,  according  to  the  Size  of  the  House,  and 
plac'd  on  some  Sand  or  Earth  in  the  midst  of  the  Floor  below, 
the  Brimstone  to  be  fired  by  a  hot  Bullet  or  other  large  Piece  of 
Iron  laid  on  it. 

N.  B.  All  living  Creatures,  whose  lyives  are  worth  preserv 
ing,  should  be  moved  out  of  the  House  during  this  Operation,  & 
the  Sand  or  Earth  should  be  well  laid  on  the  Floor  to  prevent 
the  Danger  of  the  Fire. 


Oil  1761. — A  change  comes  o'er  the  spirit  of  the  muse  this 
season,  and  the  author's  feelings  are  correspondingly  elevated.  The  verse 
on  the  title  indicates  that  British  consols  have  advanced,  and  even  the 
rude  cut  of  the  face  of  generous  Sol  on  the  title  page  depicts  that  Mon 
arch  of  the  Day  as  looking  pleasant,  and  agreeable.  On  the  next  page 
the  poet  pours  out  his  swelling  soul  in  evident  rejoicing,  at  the  rich  har 
vest  of  glory  redounding  to  AMHERST  and  the  arms  of  Britain. 

In  his  address  to  the  Reader  he  mentions  the  extraordinary  encourage 
ment  offered  the  Royal  Society  by  the  Crown,  for  the  observation  of  the 
transit  of  Venus,  and  he  quotes  the  French  King  as  being  equally  liberal 
towards  the  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences  for  a  similar  purpose. 

By  a  note  concerning  the  decoration  of  the  Almanack  with  poetry  of 
his  own  composing,  we  are  led  to  infer  that  the  Doctor  may  have  borrowed 
some  for  a  few  years  previous,  or  had  it  furnished  by  some  sympathising 
friend. 

Further  astronomical  information  is  afforded  by  the  definition  and 
description  of  the  five  planetary  aspects,  and  encouragement  is  given  to 
American  vintage  by  the  insertion  of  "  a  proper  Receipt  to  make  Currant 
Wine." 

His  advice  to  Divines  and  Astronomera  is  not  devoid  of  Ames,  and  the 
monthly  verses  are  exuberant  on  the  subject  of  the  Jive  senses  and  what 
may  be  determined  by  the  proper  use  of  them. 

The  miscellany  consists  of  a  short  description  of  coins  current,  their 


ALMANACK    FOR    1762.  323 

values,  and  the  origin  of  their  titles,  an  anecdote  of  Artiabalipa  (?  Ata- 
hualpa)  King  of  Peru,  an  appreciative  and  circumspect  person.  The  clos 
ing  essay  is  upon  the  very  (at  that  time)  momentous  subject  of  Small-pox, 
with  an  opinion  concerning  the  use  of  Mercury  or  Calomel  as  a  cure  for 
the  disease. 

The  usual  olla  podrida  of  sayings  and  suggestions,  goes  to  fill  up  the 
weather  column  which  would  otherwise  be  dry  and  indigestible  for  general 
readers. 

In  a  note  concerning  the  length  of  the  English  mile,  a  Sabbath  Day's 
Journey,  etc.,  he  concludes  with  the  observation.  "  The  Traveller  may 
Note,  that  in  all  Solitary  Ways,  where  the  Sight  is  constantly  broken  and 
interrupted,  *  *  *  the  Miles  seem  much  longer  than  in  open  Plain." 

This  will  readily  account  for  the  custom  some  people  have,  (especially 
late  at  Night)  of  taking  the  middle  of  the  road  in  preference  to  the  side 
walk,  for  their  homeward  march  en  solitaire. 


THE     ALMANACK     FOR     1762. 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 


BOSTON:  Printed  &  Sold  by  JOHN  DRAPER,  in  Cornhill :  RICHARD 
DRAPER  in  Newbury-Street ;  GREEN  &  RusSEivi/  and  EDES  &  Cm,  in 
Queen-Street ;  and  THOMAS  &  JOHN  Fi,EET  at  the  Heart  and  Crown  in 

Cornhill. 

Sold  also  by  the  BOOKSEW,ERS. 


Now  we  the  long  expected  Year  behold 

Which  Astrologic  Prophecies  foretold, 

And  great  Events  since  Time  began  conceal'd 

Rush  forth,  and  are  to  open  View  reveal'd 

Th'  Objector  says,  "  What  Things  are  come  to  pass 

Does  not  each  Scene  continue  as  it  was  ?" 

No. 

The  best  of  Kings  has  laid  his  Scepter  down, 
And  GEORGE  the  Third  adorns  the  British  Crown  ; 
New  conquered  Realms  joins  to  his  boundless  Sway 
And  Savage  Chiefs  their  willing  Homage  pay : 
He  reigns  o'er  Realms  to  former  Kings  unknown, 
Whose  vanquish'd  Monarchs  due  Subjection  own. 


324  ALMANACK  FOR  1762. 

Ames  1762. 

Urania  descending  from  the  forky  Summit  of  Parnassus 
delivered  me  a  Rod,  sent  by  the  whole  Choir  of  Muses,  ta 
Chastize  the  Insolence  of  the  Vintners,  whom  they  never  lov'd 
and  with  whom  they  are  highly  offended  for  a  Peice  in  Rhime 
directed  to  Me  in  the  Postscript  of  the  Boston  Weekly  News  Better 
Thursday  25th  December  1760,  on  the  Receipt  I  published  in  my 
last  Year's  Almanack,  to  make  Currant  Wine. 

Like  Priests  of  Baal  they  crav'd  the  Muses  Aid, 
But  Muses  of  the  Vintners  are  afraid  ; 
For  they  infum'd  that  wicked  furious  Crew, 
Who  Orphceus,  and  his  tuneful  Lyre  o'erthrew ; 
So  void  of  Thought,  and  uninspir'd,  their  Song 
Was  doggrel  low,  and  grov'ling  crept  along : 
Had  not  their  Censure  been  unjust  and  bad, 
They  might  and  may  with  Poetry  run  mad. 
Good  Currant  Wine  is  genuinely  made 
By  that  just  Rule  when  cautiously  obey'd, 
For  Men  of  Worth,  of  Wealth,  of  Curious  Taste 
To  that  Receipt  subscribe  probatum  est 
They  did  presume  to  charge  me  with  a  Rape, 
But  they  commit  Adult'ry  with  the  Grape  ; 
They  do  indeed  as  often  as  they  brew 
And  Liquors  make  which  Nature  never  knew ; 
They  do  the  Off-spring  of  the  Vine  defame 
To  call  their  Wines  by  any  genuine  Name  : 

0  !  thou  Madeira  !  pure  as  Morning  Dew  ! 
Thy  Excellence  the  Gods  stand  witness  to : 
Thy  Name  enobles  many  a  guileful  Cheat, 
Which  can't  thy  Taste  nor  Flavour  counterfeit. 

1  meddl'd  not  with  Wine  on  Nature's  Part 
But  only  such  as  was  contriv'd  by  Art ; 
Yet  Vint'ners  the  Victory  is  thine, 

Your  Art  (I  own)  by  far  exceedeth  mine, 
For  you  can  make  your  Cyder  into  Wine. 


JANUARY. 

America  kind  Heav'ns  peculiar  Care, 
Vast  heaps  of  Nature's  Stores  are  treasur'd  here  : 
Here  the  kind  Earth  produces  yearly  Grain, 
Soften'd  by  Waters  and  descending  Rain : 


ALMANACK    FOR    1762.  325 

In  Time  thy  Towers  will  vie  with  Europe's  Pride, 
And  scepter'd  Heads  will  gladly  here  reside. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  British  Conquests  reach  to  India's  Land, 
Whose  num'rous  States  an  hundred  Kings  command  : 
There  the  Mogul  a  spacious  Empire  sways, 
Around  his  golden  Seat  the  dazzling  Blaze 
Of  Diamonds,  Rubies,  Sapphires,  strike  the  Eye, 
The  richest  Throne  beneath  the  copious  Sky. 

MARCH. 

Vast  are  the  Treasures  Indian  Climes  may  boast, 

But  Pagan  Ignorance  o'erspreads  the  Coast ; 

To  Idol-Gods  or  living  Brutes  they  bow, 

Their  King's  the  greatest  Deity  they  know. 

Ye  Christians  as  their  plenteous  Wealth  you  share, 

With  your  blest  Faith  enrich  the  Natives  there. 

APRIL. 

In  India's  Woods  the  Parrot  builds  her  Nest, 
With  Plumage  of  the  gayest  Tinctures  drest : 
Sweet  docile  Bird  whose  imitating  Tongue, 
In  Words  distinct  repeats  its  mimic  Song ; 
Discourses  *  too  with  Reason  thro'  the  whole, 
And  shows  the  Wisdom  of  its  little  Soul. 


Commerce !  We  do  thy  num'rous  Blessings  own, 
Thou  bring'st  the  Fruit  of  other  Nations  Home  : 
The  Taste  of  hot  Arabia's  Spice  we  know, 
Nor  feel  the  scorching  Sun  that  makes  it  grow : 
Without  the  Worm  in  Persian  Silks  we  shine, 
And  without  Planting,  drink  of  every  Vine. 

JUNE. 

See  in  whose  Blood  the  chilling  Ague  reigns, 
His  Eyes  grow  languid  and  declare  his  Pains : 
The  ruddy  Lips  that  once  engag'd  the  Sight, 
Now  trembling  quivers  in  a  ghastly  White  : 
The  Joints  are  now  unstrung,  the  Fabrick  shakes, 
Nature  the  Dissolution  fears  and  quakes. 

1  See  Mr.  Lock  on  Htim.  Under st.,  Vol.  I.  p.  285. 


326  ALMANACK  FOR  1762. 

JULY. 

The  Man  who  burns  with  Fevers  on  his  Bed, 

How  his  dry'd  Eye-Balls  sink  into  his  Head : 

The  Torture  racks  his  Bones,  contracts  his  Skin, 

Expressive  of  the  glowing  Flames  within  ; 

In  vain  he  Drops  of  cool  Relief  receives, 

His  Tongue  close  to  his  clammy  Palate  cleaves. 

AUGUST. 

After  the  Dog-Days  Heat,  a  cooling  Breeze, 

Of  Evening  Air  closely  contracts  the  Pores, 

And  locks  transpiring  Exhalations  in  : 

Hence  Dysenterys,  and  Drought,  and  scorching  Firesr 

And  killing  Pains  the  tender  BOWELS  rack, 

The  Seat  of  Nature's  dreadful  War  within. 

SEPTEMBER. 

When  itching  Humours  tickle  thro'  the  Veins, 

And  Nature  of  the  uneasy  Guests  complains, 

WThen  the  foul  Leprosy  breaks  thro'  the  Skin, 

And  the  white  Scurf  without  declares  the  Plague  within, 

When  too  the  L/ungs  almost  forgot  to  breathe, 

And  quick  and  short,  painful  and  panting  heave. 

OCTOBER. 

How  the  Live-Silver  pristine  Health  restores, 
Subtly  pervades  and  cleanses  all  the  Pores, 
Drives  from  the  sweetn'd  Blood  the  laten  111, 
And  bids  the  Lungs  to  rise,  and  fall  at  will, 
Happy  Catholicon  !  at  first  designed 
In  all  Capacities  to  serve  Mankind. 

NOVEMBER. 

When  impious  War  the  guilty  World  alarms, 

And  jarring  Nations  meet  in  hostile  Arms, 

O'er  the  dire  Plains  their  threatning  Ranks  display. 

To  try  the  Fortune  of  a  doubtful  Day, 

With  mingling  Dead  the  Plains  are  cover'd  o'er, 

And  thundring  Cannons  shake  the  sounding  Shore. 

DECEMBER. 

If  the  blest  Olive  waves  with  Signs  of  Peace 
Through  all  the  Host  tumultuous  Clamours  cease, 


ALMANACK    FOR    1762.  327 

Th'  exulting  Croud  are  dazzl'd  with  Surprize, 
And  on  the  pleasing  Omen  fix  their  Eyes ; 
The  gladd'ning  News  Fame's  hasty  Pinions  bear, 
And  Shouts  of  Joy  salute  it  from  afar. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

To  live  &  die  is  all  we  have  to  do. 

FEBRUARY. 

The  Obedience  of  the  Canadians  must  be  suspected,  because  subjected 
by  Force. 

'Tis  as  cruel  to  spare  all,  as  to  spare  none. 

MARCH. 

Let  the  Caesars  of  the  Ides  of  this  March  beware,  for  Disputes  now 
begun,  to  great  Heigh  th  &  Length  may  run. 

HCBC  est  Magna  diuque  exspettata  Conjunflio  Saturni  et  Joins.  This 
loving  Aspect  of  the  Sun  &  Venus  portends  new  Plantations  :  carried  on 
for  the  public  Good. 

Fortunate  Marriages,  and  many  Children  on  the  Stocks  to  build  Socie 
ties  withal. 


Now  Phoebe's  sickly  Face  bound  up  in  Clouds,  and  circled  round  with 
Light,  portends  a  Storm. 

Whether  it  is  not  better  to  marry  a  quiet  Fool  than  a  witty  Scold. 

Some  unusual  Phenomenon. 

Important  Advice  from  Home. 

When  the  Dolphins  dance  a  Storm  approacheth. 

MAY. 

Much  Altercation,  and  some  bloody  Noses. 
Many  unlucky  and  violent  Accidents  at  this  time. 

All  Men  are  by  Nature  equal, 

But  differ  greatly  in  the  sequel. 

The  Public  Good  Men  oft  pretend, 

While  private  Interest  is  their  End. 

JUNE. 

In  cool  Retreats  we  skulking  strive  to  shun 
The  torrid  Rays  of  June's  meridian  Sun. 
The  Infirm  shou'd  now  make  Use  of  their  Leathern  Conveniences. 


328  ALMANACK  FOR  1762. 

JULY. 

The  Ladies  need  their  Fans. 

Women  are  sooner  angry  than  Men,  the  Sick  than  the  Healthy,  the  Old 
than  the  Young. 

Be  careful  how  and  what  you  drink. 

It  is  decreed  above 

That  soon  or  late  we  all  must  love. 

AUGUST. 

At  this  Time  there  is  a  Vote  of  the  House  in  the  starry  Parliament  for 
Rain. 

The  Muscovian  Weed  rightly  apply'd  is  the  most  effectual  Cure  for  the 
Itch  of  Stealing. 

SEPTEMBER. 

They  who  run  aground  at  the  full  Tide  of  a  Silver  Currency,  will  stick 
in  the  Mud  at  the  Tide  of  Ebb. 

Strange  that  we  should  feel  the  War  most  when  it  is  past. 

This  Month  is  a  proper  Season  to  recruit  the  unhealthy  by  taking  Dr. 
Horse,  and  riding  long  Journeys,  tho'  moderately. 

OCTOBER. 

Let  the  Poor  be  content  with  their  present  Lot,  for  when  they  come  to 
make  Brick  without  Straw,  their  Case  will  be  yet  worse. 

NOVEMBER. 

Now  fortify  your  Cellars  against  the  Approach  of  Winter. 
A  Crisis  is  just  at  Hand  when  nothing  but  Industry  and  Frugality  can 
save  us. 

DECEMBER. 

The  harmless  Country  Folk  themselves  amuse, 

Drink  Cyder,  smoak  Tobacco,  &  read  the  News. 

An  Increase  of  Law-suits  amongst  the  rural  sort,  and  after  the  Meat  is 
gone  they  will  pick  the  Bones  of  each  other. 

Alas !  how  many  Wise  are  gone,  how  few  remain  behind  ! 

DEATH  levels  all,  the  Wicked  and  the  Just ; 

Man's  but  a  Flower,  and  his  End  is  Dust. 


A  PAGE  FOR  THE  LADIES. 

The  Idea  of  Love  &  the  Ladies  are  so  connected,  that  when 
I  dedicate  the  following  Lines  to  the  Fair  Sex,  I  may  be  allowed 
to  make  use  of  the  Word  Love :  Therefore  I  promise  them  that 
the  Subject  which  I  treat  of  in  the  following  Pages  shall  be  the 


ALMANACK  FOR  1762.  329 

Object  of  their  Love  :  Then  as  first  and  most  beloved,  I  shall 
give  a  few  Hints  concerning  that  Shrub  or  Bush  manufactured 
in  the  East  Indies,  the  Decoction  of  whose  Leaf  makes  that 
Liquor  which  so  delights,  &  sometimes  almost  intoxicates,  called 
Tea.  And  first  of  its  negative  Virtues ;  If  the  Gentlemen  en 
liven  their  social  Hours  with  the  generous  Bowl,  furnished  from 
the  West  Indies  with  the  inebriating  Spirit,  and  pleasant  Acid 
mixed  with  the  cool  Fountain,  why  should  not  the  Ladies  chear 
their  friendly  Visits  with  the  harmless  Decoction  of  an  Indian 
Leaf?  Naturalists  observe,  that  amongst  Herbs,  Worm-wood  and 
Hore-hound  will  not  grow  together ;  no  more  will  the  Habit  of 
drinking  Tea  and  spiritous  Liquors  freely  subsist  in  the  same 
Person.  It  is  rare  to  find  an  Instance  of  a  Person  that  is  far 
gone  in  the  Habit  of  drinking  Drams  or  spirituous  Liquors,  but 
what  abhors  the  Thoughts  of  Tea :  On  the  other  Hand,  they 
who  use  Milk,  but  more  especially  Tea  for  Breakfast,  are  more 
easily  preserved  from  the  Custom  and  Habit  of  drinking  Spiri 
tuous  Liquors,  which  murders  Soul,  Body,  Estate  and  Reputa 
tion.  They  who  upon  the  Use  of  Tea  cry  out,  It  hurts  my 
Nerves  !  away  with  it !  Alas,  they  should  go  further  back  for  the 
Cause:  These  nervous  Symptoms  are  caused  by  some  Male- 
Regimen  of  their  own,  or  from  a  weak  State  by  Nature  :  they 
are  afflicted  for  their  own,  or  their  Parents  Mis-Conduct :  Tea 
only  raises  the  Ambush  of  a  latent  Distemper,  but  would  by  and 
by  break  forth  spontaneously  upon  them:  if  Tea  hurts  them,  it 
is  only  the  Criterion  of  weak  disordered  Nerves.  They  who 
tremble  at  only  drinking  a  Dish  of  Tea,  should  rather  tremble 
to  think  they  are  so  obnoxious  to  nervous  Disorders :  Tea  in 
their  Case  serves  only  as  a  Glass  which  truly  represents  the 
state  of  that  curious  Frame  that  join  Soul  and  Body  together, 
the  Nerves  ;  from  which  Source  the  most  dispiriting  and  ill- 
feeling  Disorders  of  Body  and  Mind,  do  arise. 

But  positively  :  TEA  is  a  Friend  to  the  Muses,  it  brightens 
the  Intellects  and  clears  the  Understanding.  High  strong  Food 
casts  an  impervious  Mist  upon  the  Mind,  and  greatly  beclouds 
its  Faculties  :  But  Tea  keeps  the  Body  light  and  easy,  whilst  it 
very  sensibly  satisfies  Hunger :  Tea  in  this  Light  is  considered 
only  as  Part  of  our  Food :  its  medicinal  Virtues  more  eminently 
reside  in  the  Thea  Veridis,  or  Green  Tea :  But  take  in  the  whole 


330  ALMANACK  FOR  1762. 

Idea  of  Tea,  and  consider  it  both  in  its  alimentary  and  medicinal 
Qualities,  and  more  with  Justice  and  Truth  may  be  said  in  its 
Praise  than  of  any  other  Plant  or  Shrub  that  grows  out  of  the 
Earth.— 

There  may  be  some  considerable  political  Objections  against 
the  Utility  of  so  great  a  Consumption  of  a  foreign  Commodity : 
but  as  I  meddle  not  with  Politicks,  so  I  shall  not  pretend  to 
answer  this  Objection.  The  Tea  Pot,  like  the  Widow's  Cruise 
of  Oil,  receives  only  hot  Water,  and  emits  a  pure  alimentary 
Liquor,  and  continues  to  do  so  after  several  Repetitions. 

2.  The  second  Thing  I  would  offer  to  the  Ladies  Consider 
ation  as  what  claims  their  Regard  and  Love  next  to  Tea,  is 
their  tender  Offspring. 

It  is  an  Krror  in  Judgment  on  the  Part  of  the  Mother  who 
only  for  the  Preservation  of  her  Beauty,  and  fine  Shape  of  Body, 
would  put  out  her  Infant  to  Nurse,  since  suddenly  to  dry  up  a 
full  Breast  of  new  Milk  in  a  healthy  Woman,  does  such  Violence 
to  Nature  as  greatly  exposes  the  Mother  to  such  Diseases  as  may 
marr  her  Beauty  and  Shape  both.  On  the  part  of  the  Child, 
whose  Flesh  is  the  same  with  the  Mothers,  nourished  with  the 
same  Blood,  and  Nature  had  provided  a  Store  from  the  same 
Fountain  for  its  future  Nourishment  and  GrowTth :  I  say,  for  the 
Infant  to  be  deprived  of  that  Aliment  that  was  congenial  to  its 
Nature,  and  put  to  the  Breast  of  a  Nurse,  who  differs  in  Consti 
tution  from  the  Child's,  as  much  as  one  Species  differs  from 
another — happy  !  thrice  happy  for  many  a  poor  Infant,  in  such 
cases,  if  its  Nurse  had  been  a  Goat,  and  not  a  Woman  !  The 
former  feeds  on  the  tender  Bruse,  and  drinks  only  at  the  cool 
Fountain,  but  the  latter  sometimes  feeds  foul,  and  drinks  deeply 
of  that  Liquor  which  can,  and  often  does  kill  the  Infant  at 
second  Hand,  from  the  Breast  of  the  Nurse,  of  which  unhappy 
Instances,  many  Examples  might  be  produced.  Almost  all 
Infants  Diseases  arise  by  fault  in  the  alimentary  Tube,  from 
Disorders  in  the  Milk,  whether  of  the  Nurse  or  Mother  :  Hence 
the  Nurses  to  Persons  of  Quality  are  under  the  strictest  Regimen 
by  the  Direction  of  the  most  eminent  and  learned  Physicians. 

It  certainly  is,  in  some  Measure,  our  own  Fault,  that  so  great 
a  Part  of  the  Human  Race  perish  in  a  state  of  Infancy.  Our 
indulgent  Creator  has  done  his  Part  with  infinite  Perfection. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1762.  331 

"  His  Byes  did  see  our  Substance  yet  being  unperfect :  and  in 
his  Book  all  our  Members  were  written,  which  in  Continuance 
were  fashioned,  when  we  were  made  in  Secret,  and  curiously 
wrought  in  the  lowest  Parts  of  the  Earth."  Nature  provided 
wonderfully  for  our  Preservation  in  her  soft  and  easy  Lap,  but 
when  so  delicate  a  Machine  as  the  Body  of  an  Infant  is  (whose 
very  Bones  were  lately  a  fluid  Mass)  I  say,  when  such  a  delicate 
Thing  from  the  Lap  and  Care  of  Nature,  comes  to  be  jounced  on 
the  hard  Knees,  or  handled  with  the  rough  Fingers  of  a  cruel 
Nurse,  or  ignorant  Mother :  it  is  a  Wonder  that  there  are  no 
more  crooked  Limbs,  dislocated  Joints,  and  Cripples  from 
Infancy,  than  there  are.  Naturalists  observe  that  the  Hen  is 
the  fondest  of  her  young  ones  of  any  Animal :  but  how  many 
of  the  tender  Brood  perish  in  a  cool  Morning  for  want  of  the 
Mother's  indulgent  Care :  So  some  Mothers,  though  they  love 
their  Infants,  hardly  discover  common  Sense  in  their  Treatment 
of  them.  Many  Infants  are  sick,  and  many  die  with  the  unsuit 
able  Aliment  they  receive  by  the  Hand,  or  at  second  Hand,  from 
the  Breast.  I  would,  according  to  my  Talent  give  special  Cau 
tions  and  Directions  in  an  Affair  of  so  much  Importance  as  this 
seems  to  be  :  but  it  would  swell  these  Pages  to  a  Volume  :  I  hope 
some  qualifyed  Person  in  Charity  to  the  helpless  &  suffering  Part 
of  ourselves,  will  accomplish  a  Work  which  would  be  so  useful. 
But  that  there  may  be  some  special  Matter  alledged  in  this 
Charge  against  the  Ladies  Conduct  towards  their  Infants,  I  shall 
repeat  the  Words  of  Doctor  Hales  as  follows  :  "  When  the  Bodies 
of  tender  Infants  (says  he)  are  close  confined  in  Swathing,  neither 
their  Breast  nor  Belly  can  rise  so  freely  as  they  ought  to  do,  when 
the  Child  draws  its  Breath:  and  consequently  not  only  its 
Breathing,  but  Digestion  also,  are  thereby  greatly  incommoded, 
for  the  Digestion  is  much  promoted  by  the  Kneedings  of  the 
Middriff  on  the  Stomach,  which  are  no  less  than  twelve  hundred 
in  an  Hour  :  and  in  proportion  as  these  numerous  Kneedings  are 
abated  by  Swathing,  so  will  the  Digestion  be  accordingly  retarded 
and  incommoded." — "  Further,"  says  he,  "  Ignorant  Nurses  tak 
ing  the  Soft  Part  of  the  Scull  for  a  great  Defect  in  Nature,  are  apt 
often  to  attempt  to  close  the  Mould  of  the  Head,  as  they  call  it, 
that  is  to  press  together  by  Stroking  and  Bandage,  those  Parts 
of  the  Scull  which  are  bony,  expecting  thereby  to  unite  those 


332  ALMANACK  FOR  1762. 

distant  bony  Parts,  not  knowing  that  the  intermediate  soft  Parts 
will  turn  to  Bone  :  little  thinking  what  Injury  they  do  the  Infant 
thereby  &c.  causing  Fits  and  Head  Aches  during  Life  &c." 


Oil  1762. — The  astronomer-poet  of  Dedham  hails  the  advent 
of  the  year,  in  which  great  happenings  were  to  come  to  pass  by  prediction 
of  the  Astrologers  in  the  year  1760  ;  and  to  the  skeptical,  the  author  urges 
the  advent  of  peace,  and  the  accession  of  George  the  Third,  as  the  ample 
realization  of  the  star-gazers'  prognostications. 

The  great  advantage  of  possessing  an  organ  even  if  only  an  annual 
publication,  is  made  practical  in  the  case  of  Dr.  Ames.  Some  envious  per 
son,  with  whom  Protection  was  a  delusion  and  a  snare,  and  home  produc 
tion  but  deceit,  has  taken  the  physician  to  task  for  his  "  Currant  Wine" 
suggestion  made  in  the  Almanack  for  1761.  But  the  presumptuous  censor 
has  met  a  foe  in  the  Doctor  most  worthy  to  defend  the  premises,  and  the 
verses  in  reply — most  assuredly  from  the  Doctor's  own  pen — -are  refresh 
ingly  satirical,  and  considerably  adverse  to  the  sentiments  expressed  at 
this  present  day  by  the  average  inn-keeper. 

The  monthly  verses  are  in  the  Muse's  happiest  vein.  Love  of  America; 
Honor  to  the  Parent  Land,  the  advancement  of  the  Empire  of  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  and  the  extension  of  the  Commercial  intercourse  of  the  Colonies. 
From  these  general  topics  he  gravitates  toward  his  profession  ;  Agues, 
Fevers,  Dysenteries,  Leprosy,  are  described  with  facile  pen,  and  then  the 
remedy — -the  live  Silver — ( Mercury)  is  poetically  brought  forth  as  the 
panacea  par  excellence.  Happy  Catholicon  !  as  the  disciple  of  Hippocrates 
exclaims,  recalling  to  our  memory  the  medical  practice  of  the  period  cele 
brated  in  the  ditty  of  the  itinerant  peddler,  with  violin  accompaniment. 

"  If  Mr.  A.  or  B.  is  sick, 

"  Go  call  the  Doctor,  and  be  quick ! 

"  The  Doctor  comes  with  right  good  will, 

"  And  ne'er  forgets  his  Calomel." 

War  with  sounding  alarms,  marches  with  bloody  banners  over  the 
plains,  (in  November)  and  a  tableau  of  Peace  precedes  the  falling  of  the 
curtain,  at  the  close  of  the  first  month  of  dreary  Winter. 

The  Essay  is  entitled  a  "  Page  for  the  Ladies" :  In  a  happy  style  the 
Doctor  extols  the  "cup  that  cheers  but  not  inebriates,"  and  expands  his 
protean  mind  in  adulation  of  the  herb  and  its  wholesome  properties — 
lauding  it  as  a  "  friend  to  the  Muses" — stimulating  to  the  Intellect  and 
clarifying  to  the  Understanding.  It  would  not  be  like  the  Doctor  if  he 
could  not  make  himself  agreeable  in  more  ways,  so  he  ends  his  allocution 
and  the  almanack,  on  the  care  of  Children  and  the  habits  of  Nurses, — A 
discourse  exhibiting  the  noble  qualities  of  his  nature  as  a  teacher,  and 


ALMANACK  FOR  1763.  333 

well  worthy  of  resurrection  in  this  age  of  Day  Nurseries  and  Children's 
Hospitals.  The  characteristic  humor  of  the  inn-keeper  shines  in  the 
weather  observations,  and  the  tenor  of  his  remarks  political,  betokens  the 
premonitory  symptoms  of  the  trouble  soon  to  antagonize  the  children 
against  the  parent. 

"  Old  Tenor  "  has  now  assumed  such  a  bulk  as  a  circulating  medium, 
that  it  almost  requires  a  "weigher  and  ganger"  to  determine  its  correla 
tive  value  with  flax,  tow,  hemp  and  other  bulky  materials  on  which  its 
primary  issue  was  based  ;  not  to  mention  gold  or  silver  which  was  of  rare 
occurrence. 

In  the  almanack  this  year  is  a  table  showing  its  current  value  on  a  gold 
and  silver  basis  from  which  we  may  note  that  ^500  "  Old  Tenor  "  is  ^66, 
135.,  4d.  in  "  lawful  money."  Or  in  the  ratio  of  one  to  seven  and  one-half. 

We  further  find  that  Spanish  silver  is  sold  in  London  at  five  shillings 
five  pence  per  ounce. 

At  Philadelphia  eight  shillings  six  pence  their  currency  per  ounce. 

At  New  York  eight  shillings  per  ounce  by  law,  though  often  sold  for 
95.  to  9S.  3d.  in  the  market. 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR  1763. 


By    Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON  :  Printed  &  Sold  by/.  Draper,  in  Cornhill,  R.  Draper,  in  New- 
bury-street :  Green  &  Russell,  and  Edes  &  Gill,  in  Queen-street ;  and 
T.  &  J.  Fleet  at  the  Heart  and  Crown  in  Cornhill.  Sold  also  by  the 
Booksellers. 

Price  Half  a  Dollar  per  Dozen,  &  Six  Coppers  single. 


PLENTY  three  Years  our  crowded  Graneries  fill'd 

'  Ere  Soil's  fierce  Beams  the  blighted  Pastures  kill'd. 

When  Drought  for  Rains  suppress  the  Nilus  flow 

In  sTZgypfs  Plains  no  Fruit  nor  Herbage  grow  : 

When  seven  full  Streams  had  seven  large  Harvests  crown'd 

Then  seven  long  Years  with  Famine  curst  the  Ground  : 

If  Nature  sure  this  Contrast  still  maintains, 

One  Year  of  Drought  and  Scarcity  remains. 


334  ALMANACK  FOR  1763. 

READER. 

What  I  have  said  concerning  the  Continuance  of  the  Drought 
and  Scarcity  this  Year,  in  the  Title  Page  Verse,  is  a  Conclusion 
drawn  from  Premises  that  are  not  universally  certain,  therefore 
the  Conclusion,  viz.  that  this  Year  1763  will  be  a  dry  and  scarce 
Year  is  not  certain. — He  who  has  fore-ordained  whatsoever 
conies  to  pass,  knows,  and  he  only  knows  with  absolute  Certain 
ty,  what  will  come  to  pass  :  The  Book  of  Fate  is  hid  from  all 
created  Beings : — Creatures  know  future  Events  only  by  Way  of 
Argumentation  and  Deduction  :  and  indeed  in  some  Instances 
there  is  such  a  Connection  between  the  Premises  and  Conclusion 
that  the  Event  is  known  with  great  Certainty  ;  but  in  general 
we  know  nothing  of  the  Connection  of  Things,  we  cannot  see 
the  Links  of  that  great  Chain  which  binds  with  certainty  all  the 
Events  of  the  wide  extended  Universe  :  Indeed  the  Devil  does 
not  know  so  much  of  future  Events  as  many  expect  an  Almanack 
Maker  should  foretell,  although  it  must  be  owned  that  they  are 
willing  to  allow  him  the  Help  of  the  Devil  for  his  Information. 

I  have  been  often  requested  to  explain  some  Things  relating 

to  the  Moon's  rising  and  setting. Astronomers  begin  their 

Day  at  12  o'Clock  at  Noon  :  I  have  told  you  that  in  September 
it  will  be  New  Moon  the  7th  day  at  u  in  the  Forenoon,  but  if 
I  had  spoken  in  the  astronomical  Language  I  should  have  said 
New  Moon  September  the  6th  day  at  23  Hours  past  Noon;  but 
in  the  Almanack  I  conform  to  the  common  and  vulgar  Method 
of  Computation,  that  is,  beginning  the  Day  at  Midnight,  and 
continuing  it  till  the  Midnight  following ;  and  the  first  Moment 
of  Time  after  Midnight  belongs  to  the  Morning  of  the  next 
Day :  Now  for  Example,  How  are  you  informed  of  the  Moon's 
rising  upon  the  2d  Day  of  May,  when  if  you  look  into  the 
Almanack  you  find  no  figure,  but  the  Word  Morn  to  stand 
against  the  2d  Day  of  May  ?  Why,  the  Moon  does  not  rise  at 
all  that  Day  or  within  that  24  Hours,  which  according  to  this 
Method  makes  the  2d  Day ;  for  on  the  ist  Day  of  May  the 
Moon  rises  at  n  Hours  26  Min.  at  Night,  from  which  Time  to 
the  Moon's  next  rising  is  24  Hours  43  Min.  which  carries  the 
next  rising  to  9  Min.  in  the  Morning  of  the  3d  Day ;  so  that  the 
2d  Day  is  a  Blank  on  which  the  Word  Morn,  stands,  which 
denotes  that  the  following  days  until  the  Change  the  Moon  rises 


ALMANACK    FOR    1763.  335 

in  the  Morning  preceding  or  going  before  the  Day ;  You  are  not 
left  uninformed  of  the  Moon's  rising  at  any  Time,  for  instead 
of  calling  it  9  Min.  after  Midnight  the  2d  Day  it  is  properly 
o  hours  9  Min.  in  the  Morning  of  the  3d  day,  for  since  the  Day 
begins  at  Midnight  the  preceding  day  ended  at  Midnight,  the 
Division  is  at  that  Point  of  Time,  and  the  Darkness  of  the 
Night  from  the  Day-Light's  ending  till  Midnight  belonged  to 
the  2d  day,  and  from  Midnight  till  the  Dawn  of  the  Morning,  to 
the  3d  Day.  From  whence  it  is  easy  to  conclude  that  on  any 
Night  when  the  Moon  rises  after  Midnight  the  Time  of  her 
rising  must  be  sought  for  in  the  Almanack  on  the  Morning  of 
the  next  succeeding  Day.  —  And  if  there  should  be  any  still 
that  cannot  understand  this  Mystery,  nor  the  explination  I  have 
given  of  it,  I  shall  conclude  they  were  born  in  the  Dark  of  the 
Moon,  and  I  would  advise  them  not  to  trouble  their  Heads  about 
any  Thing  that  is  in  the  Almanack. 

NATH.  AMES. 


In  the  last  Page  but  two  there  is  an  Account  of  the  Advan 
tage  of  Preserving  FLAX  SEED,  those  who  bring  it  to  Market 
may  depend  upon  having  Silver  or  Gold  therefor  of  those  Gentle 
men  in  Boston  who  advertise  to  purchase. 


It  happens  every  Year  that  some  Tavern  Keepers  in  one 
or  other  of  the  Governments  give  up  their  Licence,  and  others 
are  substituted  in  their  Room  :  It  is  therefore  requested  for  the 
Benefit  of  Travellers  as  well  as  their  own,  that  such  new 
Licenced  Persons  would  send  a  Letter  Free  of  Charge  to  the 
Author  living  at  DEDHAM,  that  it  maybe  inserted  in  the  follow 
ing  Years. — They  must  be  particular  in  expressing  the  Number 
of  Miles  they  are  from  the  stages  before  &  after  them. 


JANUARY. 

Whilst  Capricorn's  cold  Tropic  bears  command, 
The  naked  Trees  in  frozen  Armour  stand, 
Bound  fast  with  Ice  the  Waves  no  longer  roar, 
But  with  stiff  Arms  embrace  the  silent  Shore  ; 
The  mighty  Hills  lie  cover'd  deep  in  Snow. 
And  all  the  cold  Allies  of  Boreas  blow. 


336  ALMANACK  FOR  1763. 


FEBRUARY. 

For  Spain  an  evil  Planetary  Hour, 

When  She  in  League  combin'd  with  Gallic  Pow'r, 

And  Britain's  Friendship  spurn'd  with  base  Design, 

But  she  too  late  her  Folly  sees  in  vain : 

Th'  HAVANNAH  lost,  her  Navy  there  destroy'd  ! 

British  Thunder  with  British  Skill  employ'd, 

Yield  Arguments  that  work  on  Foes  the  most, 

The  Bombs  determine  who  shall  pay  the  Cost. 

MARCH. 

If  we  could  chuse  the  Time,  and  chuse  aright, 
'Tis  best  to  die  our  Honour  at  the  Height : 
When  we  have  done  our  Ancestors  no  Shame, 
But  serv'd  our  Friends,  and  well  secur'd  our  Fame, 
Then  should  we  wish  our  happy  Life  to  close, 
And  leave  no  more  for  Fortune  to  dispose. 

APRIL. 

From  Southern  Climes  the  chearful  Suh  returns, 

And  the  late  frozen  North  now  gently  warms ; 

His  subtle  Penetration  op'rates  so, 

He  does  but  look  on  Flowers  and  Plants,  they  grow : 

His  loving  Beams  sweetly  salute  the  Spring, 

And  dart  their  Virtue  into  every  Thing. 

MAY. 

When  Sol  descends,  what  Golden  Streaks  arise, 

And  Tracks  of  Glory  paint  the  Western  Skies  : 

This  is  the  Time  when  witty  Poets  tell 

That  Phcebus  into  Thetis'  Bosom  fell : 

She  blush'd  at  first,  and  then  put  out  the  Light, 

And  drew  the  modest  Curtains  of  the  Night. 

JUNE. 

Friend !  ask  not  Bodies  doom'd  to  die, 

To  what  Abode  they  go  ? 
Since  Knowledge  is  but  Sorrows  Spy, 

'Tis  better  not  to  know ; 
To  live  uprightly  then  is  sure  the  best 
To  save  ourselves,  and  not  to  damn  the  rest. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1763.  337 


JULY. 

The  Sun  is  the  Lyon  mounted  high, 
The  Ground  below  is  parch'd,  the  Air  is  dry, 
And  Bankrupt  Clouds  their  promis'd  Rain  deny ; 
The  Flowers  droop  and  fade  (their  Beauty  fled) 
And  close  their  sickly  Eyes,  and  hang  their  Head, 
And  rivel'd  up  with  Heat,  lay  dying  in  their  Bed. 

AUGUvST. 

All  Men  at  first  were  form'd  and  cas'd  in  one, 
And  Nature  hands  the  long  Succession  down  ; 
'Tis  she  unfolds  the  faint  and  dawning  Strife 
Of  Infant  Atoms  kindling  into  Life, 
Guides  dudlile  Matter,  the  new  Road  it  takes, 
And  slender  Trains  of  twisting  Fibres  makes  ; 

SEPTEMBER. 

And  makes  the  viscous  seek  the  closer  Tone, 
And  by  Degrees  to  harden  into  Bone ; 
Whilst  the  more  loose  flow  from  the  vital  Urn, 
And  in  full  Tides  of  purple  Streams  return  : 
Thus  the  dim  Spark  of  Entity  began, 
To  work  its  little  Being  into  Man. 

OCTOBER. 

Whilst  Phoebus  holds  the  Ballance  in  his  Hand, 

The  Days  and  Nights  in  Equilibrio  stand ; 

It  grows  towards  the  Evening  of  the  Year, 

And  Summer  Birds  and  Swallows  disappear; 

The  Autumn  is  with  various  Bounties  crown'd, 

And  Fruits  and  Nuts  and  Berries  paint  the  Ground, 

And  lavish  Nature  laughs  and  strews  her  Stores  around. 

NOVEMBER. 

As  o'er  their  Prey  rapacious  Wolves  engage, 

Man  dies  on  Man,  and  all  is  Blood  and  Rage ; 

With  copious  Slaughter  all  the  Fields  are  red, 

And  heap'd  with  growing  Mountains  of  the  Dead ; 

Fierce  Discord  storms,  Apollo  loud  exclaims, 

Fame  calls,  Mars  thunders,  and  the  Field's  in  Flames. 


338  ALMANACK  FOR  1763. 

DECEMBER. 

The  temperate  Man  nor  ever  over  feeds 

His  cramm'd  Desires  with  more  than  Nature  needs ; 

For  Nature  wisely  stints  our  Appetite, 

And  craves  no  more  than  undisturb'd  Delight ; 

Which  Minds  unmix'd  with  Cares  and  Fears  obtain, 

A  Soul  serene,  a  Body  void  of  Pain. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

A  bold  Speech  upon  a  good  Cause. 

Now  Coughs  and  Rhunies,  and  broken  Shins  grow  worse. 

FEBRUARY. 

Ten  to  one  but  it  snows  or  rains  about  this  time. 

MARCH. 

Where  the  Sword  has  strowed  the  Dead,  the  Plowshare  makes  the 
better  Speed. 

APRIL. 
The  Scalping  Knife  is  now  used  to  prune  French  Vines. 

The  Beaux  and  Ladies  are  now  as  gay, 
As  if  it  was  the  Month  of  May. 

Preparation  for  a  great  and  important  Affair. 

MAY. 
Some  take  a  Liberty  to  speak  ill  of  the  Absent. 

Why  so  elate, 

Before  you  know  your  Country's  fate  ? 

The  Man  is  dead  to  the  World  who  is  separated  from  Money. 

JUNE. 

An  envious  Man  is  wounded  at  the  Advancement  of  a  bold,  plain,  and 
faithful  Counsellor. 

The  hearty  Thanks  from  hungry  Goals 
Are  sent  to  those  whose  noble  souls 
Regale  themselves  in  flowing  Bowls. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1763. 


339 


JULY. 

Every  Man  carries  a  fool  in  his  sleeve,  with  some  he  appears  bold, 
with  some  he  only  pops  out  now  and  then,  but  the  wise  keep  him  hid. 

SEPTEMBER. 

Virtue  is  praised  more  than  followed. 

To  some  Men  their  Country  is  their  shame ;  and  some  are  the  Shame 
of  their  Country. 

OCTOBER. 

Wine  has  drowned  more  Men  than  the  Sea. 

NOVEMBER. 

Now  expect  more  Bankrupts  than  Miracles. 

DECEMBER. 

A  prodigal  soon  spends  what  a  covetous  father  was  a  long  time  getting. 
Time  brings  all  things  to  an  end. 


A  Brief  CHRONOLOGY  of   Remarkable  Events,  relating  chiefly 
to  the  present  WAR. 


SINCE  first  the  Sparks  of  this  dire  War  begun, 
In  this  new  World,  which  into  Europe  run. 
Since  the  perfidious  French  in  hostile  Ranks 
The  English  drove  from  smooth  Ohio's  Banks. 
Since  Washington  enter'd  the  List  of  Fame, 
And  by  a  Journey  to  Lake  Erie  came. 
Since  he  defeats  a  French  detached  Band, 
Under  the  brave  Junonville's  Command. 
Since  Contrecoeur  took  hold  of  English  Claim, 
His  Fortress  builds  and  calls  it  Fort  DuQuesne. 
Since  Bcau-se-jour  yielded  to  British  Fame, 
And  Cumberland  adorns  its  present  Name. — 
Since  Fortune  turn'd  to  Washington  adverse, 
Who  makes  good  Terms  with  a  superior  Force. 
Since  Braddock  slain  and  all  his  Soldiers  fail, 
In  a  defeat  near  fam'd  Monongahale. — 
Since  Dieskatt  dar'd  brave  Johnson  to  attack, 
Is  taken,  and  his  Soldiers  driven  back. 
Since  England's  sprightly  Trumpet  from  afar, 
Sounded  to  France  the  Signal  of  her  War. — 


I 


J749- 

j.  October  1 753. 
May  24, 1754. 


\June  13,  1754. 


June  20, 1754. 


\July  3,  1754. 
\July  9,  1755, 


\Sept.  8,  1755. 
\May  1 8,  1756. 


34-O  ALMANACK  FOR  1763. 

Since  Byng  for  not  engaging  was  so  curst,  \May  20  1756. 

That  to  be  a  Coward  since  no  Briton  durst.  f 

Since  conscious  France  puff 'd  up  with  fell  disdain,  \j  , 

Sent  back  to  us  the  voice  of  War  again.  \ 

Since  Fort  St.  Phillip,  in  Minorca  taken,  l/une  27  17  6 

Being  of  her  Country's  Succours  quite  forsaken,    f 

Since  the  French  Forces  do  besiege  and  take          |    *  , 

Oswego  Fort  upon  Ontario  Lake,—  j 

Since  the  great  Soul  of  Victory,  Prussia's  King,     )*  , 

To  Saxony  does  Martial  Terror  bring.—  j"       *'  2 

Since  his  strong  Arm  in  Battle  does  annoy,  |  ^  , 

Count  Brown  and  all  his  blasted  Schemes  destroy.  \ 

Since  He  too  bold  and  rash  advances  made,  \T  .    . 

Got  check'd  by  Daun  &  rais'd  the  Siege  of  Prague. } 

At  Hanover  since  England's  noblest  Duke,  )  ,   , 

By  French  'Etrees  receiv'd  a  sad  Rebuke.  j 

France  by  Montcalm  does  William  Henry1  take,  \^U£.  q  I7S7 

And  Savages  the  sacred  Truces  brake. —  j 

The  British  Force  from  Rochefort  do  return,          \Qct  7   I7S7 

One  small  Fort  only  do  reduce  and  burn.  j 

Brave  Forrest  fights  the  French  with  Force  uneven  )  ^  , 

With  four  Ships  only  fully  beats  their  seven.  f 

Confus'd,  dispers'd  the  French  &  Austrian  Train,)  ^ 

From  Prussia  fly  in  bloody  Rosbach  Plain. —          j 

Fresh  Laurels  now  the  Prussian  Monarch  Crowns,)  r^ 

Beats  Daun  at  Lissa,  and  his  Hosts  confounds.        j 

This  warlike  King  a  glorious  Progress  makes,         \f)ec  2i 

Fame  calls  aloud  and  Breslau  he  retakes.  / 

Osborn  at  Sea  in  fearful  Pomp  does  ride,  (.Feb   28 

With  Foudroyant  and  Orphee  by  his  side.  f 

The  English  Conquests  reach  the  Africk  Shore,     |  ^      I         ^ 

Where  Senegal  surrenders  up  her  Store.  f 

Since  at  St.  Maloes,  Marlborough  did  prevail,         |  T 

And  of  their  Shipping  burnt  an  Hundred  Sail.       j 

Prince  Clermont  at  Crevelt  by  Ferdinand,  \j          ^         , 

Was  fairly  beat  with  all  his  Warlike  band.  J 

Since  noble  Howe  lay  prostrate  on  the  Ground,      \ruiv  c   J7c8 

And  the  Whole  Armies  Soul  fled  thro'  his  Wound,} 

Since  at  Ticonderogue  in  Battalions  array,  \  *,    g 

Our  Soldiers  Lives  were  vainly  thrown  away.  j 


Cape  Breton's  Isle  taken  the  second  Time, 
For  which  our  Men  with  Godlike  Honor  shine. 


\j  /  , 

j" 


1  Fort  William  Henry  on  Lake  George. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1763.  34! 

The  Gallick  Coast  by  us  again  anuoy'd,  |    . 

And  Cherburg  taken,  and  its  Pier  destroy'd.  \^AuS-  8,  1758. 

$inceFortuneI?radstree/'s  tiresoraeMarch  did  own  "I    * 

Who  Frontenack  reduc'd  to  England's  Crown.      '  f      *'  27'  *75 

The  Prussians  now  the  Russians  quite  defeat,         |  ~ 

At  Zorndorff,  why?  the  Prussians  always  beat.       j      ^     25>  I758< 

Since  ZJ#«w  surpriz'd  the  Prussian  Camp  by  Night,  )  n   . 

Slew  Marshal  Keith,  a  wondrous  Man  in  Fight.      j  I4>  I75 

His  Life  to  Fate  Marlborough  at  Munster  gives,     (,,  , 

But  Marlborough  of  immortal  Fame  yet  lives.         \ 

Since  General  Forbes  the  Fort  Z>w  Quesne  obtains,  )  »r 

A  Key  to  all  the  rich  0/hV.y  Plains.-  \  *4'  I75  ' 

Of  Goree  too  the  British  Conquests  boast,  \  n 

A  noble  Isle  on  Golden  Guineas  Coast.  j  29'  *75 

On  General  Harrington  the  Heavens  smile,  |  »,. 

Who  conquers  Guadaloupe,  a  spacious  Isle.  f 

Since  bursting  Bombs  torment  the  bellowing  Air,  {  , 

At  Havre  de  Grace,  and  fright  the  Poltroons  there.  \      ''  5'  1759< 

Niagara  Fort  the  first  of  Victory's  here,  I  /  /  / 

By  Johnson  won  in  this  auspicious  Year.  | 

No  Frenchman  yet  can  Anthers?  s  P'ame  withstand,  (  ,-   , 

Ticonderoga  yields  at  his  Command.  I 

To  take  Crown  Point  an  arduous  Work  begun        |  ^ 

Long  since,  at  last  was  in  a  Moment  done.—  j  ' 

A  Battle  fought  on  height  of  Abram's  Plain,  |  <-.  .  , 

Where  great  Montcalm  &  greater  Jfo//i?  were  slain-  '  I3'  I759' 


Fame  stood  amaz'd  at  our  victorious  Troops,  !  c  /,/ 

When  proud  Quebec  unto  their  Capture  stoops.       } 

To  Plunder  Ireland,  Thurott  was  employ'd,  1  /?  A     g       60 

Who  meeting  Captain  Elliot  is  destroy'd.  ) 

The  French  discourag'd  from  before  Quebeck,         \j\fay  16   1760 

Raise  their  long  Siege  and  hastily  flee  back.  f 

Hail  Victory  !  behold  Montreal's  fall,  \Sept  8   i  60 

Who  can  do  more,  Amherst  has  conquer'd  all.         ) 

SinceDeath's  dark  shade  eclips'd  ^.George's  Light,  |  Q  ^  ^ 

Whose  setting  Sun  shin'd  gloriously  bright.  j" 

Elizabeth  the  great  Czarina  dies,  \.D  .c  2     1761 

And  Peter  third  to  Russia's  Throne  does  rise.         f 

Spain  unprovok'd  (to  their  Eternal  Shame)  \fan   18   1762 

A  War  with  us  unjustly  do  proclaim.  —  j 

But  George  the  third  his  Grandsire's  steps  pursues,  )  p  ,  , 

And  Martinico's  Peopl'd  Isle  subdues.  —  \ 

Since  Peter^s  Queen  his  Subjects  Treason  own,       )  T          Q     7g 

Slips  him  aside  &  Mounts  her  Husband's  Throne.  \ 


342  ALMANACK    FOR    1763. 

France  does  but  ask  and  take  our  Newfoundland.  \  T  ,• 

'  .June  27,  1762. 
None  there  oppose  or  do  the  Foe  withstand. —        \ 

Britains  strike  home  a  glorious  Conquest  make,  \  ^        J2       - 

They  do  the  rich  and  great  Havannah  take.  f 

Another  Amherst  Newfoundland  regain'd,  \Sebt  18   1762 

Sent  home  the  French  confound'd  and  asham'd.  f 


Of  Raising  FLAX. 

Experience  has,  I  doubt  not,  convinced  the  Farmers  in  this 
Province,  how  advantageous  the  raising  of  Flax  is;  and  this 
Branch  might  still  be  more  beneficial,  if  proper  Care  was  taken 
to  save  all  the  Seed.  By  the  best  Accounts  there  has  only  yet 
been  exported  from  1000  to  1200  Casks,  of  about  7  Bushels  each, 
in  a  Season.  While  at  New- York  there  is  from  8  to  9000  Casks 
annually  ship'd  off:  And  at  Philadelphia  from  10  to  12000,  which 
makes  a  considerable  Remittance.  Now  if  we  suppose,  that  out 
of  45,000  Families,  said  to  be  in  the  Province,  that  only  25,000  of 
them  saves  one  with  the  other  but  one  Bushel  of  Seed,  this 
would  make  3500  Casks.  The  Farmers  will  always  find  Sale  for 
it,  and  be  paid  in  ready  Money ;  and  have  still  this  further  Satis 
faction  that  so  much  as  they  save  of  this  Article,  the  same  Value 
of  Silver  and  Gold  they  prevent  from  being  exported ;  and  the 
many  Disadvantages  arising  from  sending  away  Money,  is  so 
plain  to  every  one,  that  we  are  likely  very  soon  to  feel  the  bad 
Effects  of  it. 


Of  the  Settlement  and  Increase  of  New  England. 

As  Providence  has  smiled  upon  the  British  Arms  this  War, 
we  have  Reason  to  hope,  that  upon  a  Peace  Canada  will  be  ceded 
to  the  English  ;  if  that  should  be  the  Case  America  will  reap  the 
happy  Fruits  of  a  bloody  War.  A  vast  extent  of  Territory  will 
be  added  to  the  British  Empire  in  America;  and  as  long  as 
Canada  is  held  by  the  English,  we  shall  have  Peace  with  the 
Savages ;  so  that  that  War  which  at  first  seemed  like  to  break 
up  our  new  Settlements  will  in  the  Conclusion  greatly  promote 
and  increase  the  Settlement  and  Peopling  of  America. — A  vast 
Tract  of  excellent  Land  lies  between  No.  IV  and  Crown-Point. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1763.  343 

I  am  informed  of  above  Twenty  Townships  granted  in  these 
Parts  which  will  soon  be  peopled.    The  Hon.  BENJAMIN  FRANK 
LIN,  Esq.,  in  his  Observations  concerning  the  increase  of  Man 
kind,  &c.  says,  "  People  increase  in  Proportion  to  the  Number 
"  of  Marriages,  and  that  is  greater  in  Proportion  to  the  Ease  and 
"  Convenience  of  supporting  a  Family.     When  Families  can  be 
"  easily  supported,  more  Persons  marry,  and  earlier  in  Life." 
And  in  another  Place  he  says,  "  Land  being  plenty  in  America, 

II  and  so  cheap  as  that  a  Labouring  Man  that  understands  Hus- 
"  bandry  can  in  a  short  Time  save  Money  enough  to  purchase  a 
"  Piece  of  New  Land  sufficient  for  a  Plantation,  whereon  he  may 
"  subsist  a  Family."     But  now  behold!    the  Farmer  may  have 
Land  for  nothing ;  Land  that  will  produce  all  the  Necessaries  of 
Life  without  Money  and  without  Price. — Land  enough  for  him 
self  and  all  his  Sons,  be  they  never  so  many,  only  for  taking  up 
and  accepting  of  the  same.     Not  single  Townships  now  offer 
themselves  to  the  lucky  Persons  that  shall  obtain  Grants  to  the 
Exclusion  of  the  rest,  but  here  is  Land  enough  for  all :    Town 
ships  to  be  collected  into  new  Governments  and  Colonies,  extent 
of  Territory  large  enough  for  a  Kingdom  ! 

The  ingenious  Mr.  STYLES  *  has  published  a  curious  Table, 
which  he  has  given  me  leave  to  transcribe,  viz. 

A  Table  of  Increase  upon  half  a  Million  Inhabitants  in  the 
four  New-England  Governments  for  the  present  Period  of  doub 
ling.  By  inspecting  which  may  be  seen  the  Number  of  Inhabi 
tants  in  New-England  for  each  Year. 

1  Possibly  Rev.  Dr.  Ezra  Stiles  is  the  person  referred  to.  He  was  a 
man  of  varied  accomplishments,  and  was  President  of  Yale  College  from 
1778  to  his  decease  May  12,  1795,  aged  68  years.  He  was  an  "inveterate 
chronicler "  and  intimate  with  all  the  doings  of  the  period  in  which  he 
lived.  In  his  diary  under  date  Feb.  13,  1779,  ne  wrote  "General  Ethan 
Allen  of  Vermont  died  and  went  to  Hell  this  day."  He  was  an  astronomer 
and  geographer,  and  inclined  to  the  opinion  that  the  Carthaginians 
advertised  their  arrival  in  America  by  the  very  curious  but  unsatisfactory 
announcement  on  Dighton  rock.  He  pursued  the  "  lost  tribes  of  Israel," 
and  it  must  have  been  with  much  satisfaction  that  he  finally  found  them 
(in  his  opinion)  in  the  intelligent  and  sociable  American  Indians. 

Dr.  Benjamin  Franklin  once  gave  him  a  thermometer,  and  this  started 
him  off  in  the  meteorological  line.  Of  such  data  he  kept  notes  for  over 
thirty  years,  and  the  results  fill  six  quarto  volumes. 


344 


ALMANACK    FOR    1763. 


A.  D. 

1760  —  500,000 
1761  —  514,050 
1762  —  528,510 

1763—543.370 
1764—558,650 

1765—574,350 
1766—590,500 

A.  D. 

1767  —  607,090 
1768  —  624,170 
1769  —  641,710 
1770—659,760 
1771—678,305 
1772—697,370 
1773—716,971 

A.  D. 

!   1  774—  737^35 
!  J775—  757>S57 
1776—779,165 
:  1777—801,070 
;  1778—823,590 
1  1779—846,745 

!    1780—870,550 

A.  D. 

1781  —  895,025 
1782  —  920,185 
T783  —  946,060 
1784—972,655 
1785-1,000,000 

1810-2,000,000 
1835-4,000,000 

This  Table  A.  D.  1760,  supposes  the  Inhabitants  of  the  four 
New-England  Governments  to  be  half  a  Million,  or  500,000  and 
the  period  of  doublihg  to  be  25  Years,  so  that  in  1785  they  will 
amount  to  1,000,000.  But  when  we  consider  the  thirteen  British 
Governments  upon  this  Continent,  from  Nova  Scotia  to  Georgia, 
the  vast  extent  of  disputed  Claim  secured  by  this  Conquest,  as 
well  as  the  great  Country  of  Canada  it  self;  I  say,  when  we 
consider  these  Things  and  look  forward,  all  Computation  is 
lost :  We  may  rather  apply  what  the  Almighty  said  to  Abraham, 
concerning  the  Settlement  of  Canaan  by  his  Posterity,2  "  Lift 
"  up  now  thine  Eyes,  and  look  from  the  Place  where  thou  art, 
"Northward,  and  Southward,  and  Eastward,  and  Westward; 
"  for  all  the  Land  which  thou  seest,  to  thee  will  I  give  it,  and  to 
"  thy  Seed  forever ;  and  I  will  make  thy  Seed  as  the  Dust  of  the 
"  Earth,  so  that  if  a  man  can  Number  the  Dust  of  the  Earth, 
"  then  shall  thy  Seed  also  be  numbered." 

We  hold  our  lands  under  no  other  Lord  but  He  who  gave  the 
Land  of  Canaan  to  Abraham  :  'Twas  He  who  directed  our 
Planters  in  their  Navigation  over  the  Atlantic  above  140  Years 
ago,  which  was  then  a  difficult  Voyage ;  and  when  they  had 
arrived  at  an  inhospitable  Shore,  and  waste  Wilderness  in  the 
dead  of  Winter,  without  one  Accommodation  of  Life,  with 
nothing  but  the  Heavens  to  skreen  them  from  the  Cold,  what 
but  Almighty  Power  did  preserve  them  ?  And  when '  they  were 
all  Friendless,  Strangers,  and  but  few  in  Number,  and  inevitably 
engaged  in  a  War  with  the  Natives,  infinite  Goodness  prevented 
their  utter  extirpation  ;  and  the  same  Hand  has  visibly  con 
ducted  them  through  every  Stage  of  their  increase  ;  and  in  our 


3  Gen.  xiii.  14,  15. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1763.  345 

Memories  are  many  recent  Instances  of  the  Interposition  of 
Providence  ;  witness  the  Destruction  of  Duke  d" Anville  and  his 
Fleet,  A.  D.  1747,  and  the  signal  Successes  of  this  War.  Great 
Things  are  to  come  to  pass  in  America,  which  every  Year  grad- 
nally  unfolds  and  opens  more  and  more  to  our  View. 

N.  AMES. 


on  1763. — Predicating  his  prognostication  on  the  experience 
of  previous  years,  and  arguing  that  Nature  again  is  liable  to  repeat  the 
Egyptian  disaster  of  Pharaoh's  times ;  the  author,  this  year  poetically 
maintains — on  the  title  page — the  dire  possibility  of  a  "  year  of  drought 
and  scarcity."  Pursuing  this  subject  in  his  annual  Salutatory,  he  enlarges 
thereon,  and  also  upon  future  events  hidden  in  the  "  Book  of  Fate ;"  very 
pleasantly  relating  the  supposed  connection  between  the  "  father  of  Evil," 
and  the  Almanack-maker ;  as  well  as  the  implied  lack  of  capacity  of  those 
who  were  "  born  in  the  Dark  of  the  Moon."  The  monthly  verses  are 
varied  with  Natural  Astrology,  and  War ;  with  notes  on  the  proper  time  to 
die,  and  some  speculations  as  to  the  propriety  of  enquiry  as  to  where 
departing  Souls  are  destined. 

A  poetic  Chronology  of  Remarkable  Events  is  ingeniously  constructed  ; 
some  advice  in  relation  to  the  advisability  of  raising  flax,  and  in  conclusion 
an  article  forecasting  the  Increase  of  New  England  and  its  advantages  to 
the  Settler.  Incorporated  with  this  is  a  tabular  estimate  of  the  increase 
in  population  to  1835,  and  a  valedictory  by  the  Doctor,  making  a  declaration 
of  title,  by  which  the  Colonists  hold  their  lands  in  America. 

Fertilizers,  Scalping  Knives,  Beaux,  Ladies,  Money,  Flowing  Bowls, 
Fools,  Virtue,  Shame  and  Bankrupts,  with  appropriate  notes,  are  all  mingled 
in  a  delightful  jumble,  as  only  the  landlord  can. 

In  the  later  issues  of  the  Almanack  is  given  annually  a  list  of  the 
various  post  roads  throughout  the  country,  and  the  most  acceptable  houses 
of  entertainment  situated  thereon,  for  the  information  of  the  traveller. 
This  made  the  almanack  very  desirable  as  a  pocket  time  card ;  hence  the 
desire  of  the  Doctor  for  a  proper  return  of  the  "  licensed  victuallers,"  that 
his  publication  might  be  "  corrected  (in  this  particular)  up  to  the  time  of 
going  to  press." 


346  ALMANACK  FOR  1764. 


THE    ALMANACK     FOR     1764. 


By  Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON  :  Printed  and  Sold  by  R.  &  S.  Draper,  in  Newbury  street ; 
Edes  &  Gill,  and  Green  &  Russell,  in  Queen-street ;  and  T.  &  J.  Fleet, 
at  the  Heart  and  Crown  in  Cornhill.  Sold  also  by  the  Booksellers. 

Price :  $s.  ^d.  per  Dozen,  and  7  Coppers  single. 


Old  Nick  's  a  Fool,  and  so  bewitch'd  to  Sin, 

That  he  has  overshot  himself  again  : 

To  set  the  Devil-driven  Savages  on  us, 

They'll  work  our  Weal,  tho'  he  but  aim'd  to  curse. 

They'll  make  a  Train  of  nodding  Virtues  rise  : 

And  be  a  School  to  keep  a  People  wise ; 

And  noble  Heroes  form  and  exercise. 

AMERICA !  thy  Int'rest  understood, 
There  are  blest  Omens  of  thy  future  Good : 
What  though  the  L,ancit  the  vital  Fluid  spills, 
It  keeps  the  Body  free  from  greater  Ills. 


Kind  Readers: 

Your  general  Acceptance  of  my  Performances,  has  encou 
raged  me  to  present  you  with  another  ALMANACK  for  the  Year 
1764. — Those  Sentences  in  the  great  Column  of  the  Weather, 
which  have  the  Letters  of  the  Alphabet  included  in  the  Paren 
thesis  against  them,  are  astrological  Notes  upon  some  of  the 
Mutual  Aspects :  the  Aspects  are  noted  in  the  same  Manner 
which  they  refer  to.  Those  Ages  which  produced  Men  of 
greater  Health,  Strength  of  Body  and  Length  of  Life,  also  pro 
duced  Men  of  greater  Genius  and  Abilities  of  Mind  :  Astrology 
was  formerly  professed  and  practised  by  Men  of  the  greatest 
Capacity,  Learning,  Honor  and  Prudence,  Men  that  were  con 
versant  with  the  Person  of  Princes  and  great  Men.  The  Astrol 
ogers  often  hit  upon  Things  very  surprizing ;  for  the  Story  is  not 
fabulous  of  Spurina,  how  he  cautioned  Julius  Ccesar  to  beware 
of  the  Ides  March,  the  Time  upon  which  C&sar  was  slain  in  the 


ALMANACK  FOR  1764.  347 

Senate  House.  Nature  to  prevent  a  Chasm  in  the  human  Mind 
fills  the  vast  Void  in  the  Understanding  of  the  Ignorant  with 
Pride  ;  what  we  do  not  know  we  despise :  There  are  many 
curious  Things  lost  that  will  be  republished  to  future  Genera 
tions.  Look  back  a  few  Years  and  see  with  what  Contempt, 
and  as  impious  we  treated  those  among  the  Ancients,  who  insti 
tuted  certain  Bodies  to  be  used  in  Defence  against  the  Effects 
of  Thunder  and  Lightning ;  they  groped  after  the  Shadow  of 
Truth  :  but  we  knew  nothing  of  the  matter;  we  despised  the 
little  they  knew,  because  we  had  no  idea  of  the  Thing  at  all ; 
But  since  such  surprising  Discoveries  have  been  made  in  Elec 
tricity  by  our  Countryman  yea  by  our  Bostonian  the  Hon.  BEN 
JAMIN  FRANKLIN,  Esq :  'tis  allowed  that  certain  Bodies  are 
able  to  defend  against  the  Effects  of  Thunder  and  Lightning, 
and  that  very  Doctrine  so  lately  despised,  is  now  admired,  and 
the  worthy  Author  of  those  new  Discoveries  justly  had  in  the 
greatest  honor  by  all  the  polite  and  enlightened  Nations  of 
Europe  —  Enroll'd  amongst  the  first  Discoverers  of  curious 
Things  when  the  full  Harvest  of  his  fame  is  ripe,  may  the 
American  Bards  upon  the  GLASSYCHORD1  chant  forth  his  honor 
for  Generations  to  come.  ASTROLOGY  has  a  Philosophical 
Foundation :  the  caelestial  Powers  that  can  and  do  agitate  and 
move  the  the  whole  Ocean,  have  also  Force  and  Ability  to 
change  and  alter  the  Fluids  and  Solids  of  the  humane  Body ; 
and  that  which  can  alter  and  change  •  the  Fluids  and  Solids  of 
the  Body,  must  also  greatly  affect  and  influence  the  Mind  ;  and 
that  which  can  and  does  affect  the  Mind,  has  a  great  Share  and 
Influence  in  the  Actions  of  Men. 

Some  Degree  of  Superstition,  mixed  with  and  over-balanced 
by  the  Light  and  Influence  of  Religion,  leads  Men  on  to  a  greater 
Degree  of  Goodness  ;  so  in  Astrology,  the  Superstition  of  which 
in  Politicks,  with  good  Sense  and  Learning,  and  the  Use  of  all 
lawful  Means,  may  lead  Men  on  to  Greatness.  A  Gentleman 
long  since  residing  in  Boston,  invited  me  into  his  Company  as  an 
Astrologician,  his  Sentiment  was,  that  there  was  Truth  in  the 
Art  and  Science  of  Astrology,  altho'  it  ever  was  lash'd  and  de 
spised  by  the  great  and  learned  Men  of  this  Age;  he  shew  me 

*A  Musical  Instrument  of  Glass  invented  bv  Mr.  FRANKLIN. 


348  ALMANACK  FOR  1764. 

his  Prediction  concerning  his  Friend  and  Kinsman  an  Officer  in 
the  Navy,  which  was,  that  he  would  acquire  great  Reputation  in 
the  Navy,  and  be  a  great  Man  in  the  Nation,  he  went  Midship 
man  with  him,  and  after  signal  Victories  at  Sea  he  wrote  me  a 
Letter  to  put  me  in  Mind  of  his  Predictions;  and  true  it  was 
this  Officer  went  on  from  conquering  to  conquer,  to  the  Glory  of 
the  British  Flag:  and  besides  becoming  an  Admiral  of  England, 
he  gained  a  Seat  in  Parliament,  and  a  Rank  among  the  Nobility, 
was  beloved  by  Mankind,  his  Death  which  (too  soon  if  we  might 
judge)  happened  after  such  signal  Services  to  the  Nation,  was 
justly  deplored  from  the  Prince  to  the  Peasant. 

This  Friend  to  Astrology,  and  to  the  Deceased  (who  long  be 
fore  the  Event,  made  his  Predictions)  has  been  a  worthy  Follower 
of  his  Friend's  great  Example  ;  has  adventur'd  much  and  done 
great  Things  in  Battle  in  the  late  Wars,  and  now  rides  an  Admiral 
in  the  British  Navy,  with  special  Betrustments  from  his  Prince, 
at  this  Day :  In  full  Faith  of  Astrology,  by  this  noble  Scale  of 
Ascent,  he  has  become  a  great  Man  by  doing  great  Things,  and 
been  the  Instrument,  among  others,  this  War,  of  gaining  great 
Good  and  Honor  to  his  Country. 

Instead  of  Verses  over  each  Monthly  Page,  I  have  given  you 
some  Hints  concerning  the  Sanctorian  Doctrine  of  Perspiration, 
a  Discharge  from  our  Bodies,  tho'  insensibly  made,  that  is  greater 
than  all  the  sensible  Evacuations  put  together,  since  Health  in 
all  Persons  every  Moment  depends  upon  a  right  Discharge  of 
this  Matter,  it  is  but  reasonable  that  every  Person  should  know 
something  about  it. 

Besides  what  is  usual  in  the  Almanack  this  Year,  I  have  fill'd 
a  Page  for  the  Gentlemen,  and  another  for  the  Husbandman, 
which  I  have  endeavour'd  to  furnish  with  Things  rather  useful 
than  curious. 

Dedham,  Sept.  i,  1763.  N.  AMES. 

N.  B.  The  several  Stages  on  the  Roads  in  the  latter  Part  of 
the  Almanack,  have  been  altered  agreeable  to  the  Letters  which 
have  been  received  in  Consequence  of  the  Advertisement  last 
Year :  It  is  still  requested  when  there  are  any  further  Alterations 
of  Stages,  they  may  be  communicated  to  the  Author  free  of 
Charges,  they  being  so  beneficial  to  Travellers. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1764.  349 


THE  DOCTRINE  OF  PERSPIRATION. 

Let  the  Body  be  weighed  at  night,  after,  and  in  the  Morning,  before, 
sensible  Evacuations,  the  Quantity  wasted  that  Night  by  insensible  Per 
spiration  will  be  determined ;  if  eight  Pounds  in  one  Day  are  taken  in  by 
Meats  and  Drink,  five  Pounds  will  be  discharged  insensibly  by  Perspira 
tion.  The  different  Constitutions,  Sexes,  Ages,  Countries,  Seasons,  Dis 
tempers,  and  all  other  Non-naturals,  make  a  great  Variation  in  different 
Persons,  or  the  same  Person  at  different  Times,  of  the  Quantity  of  the 
Matter  insensibly  perspired ;  but  he  need  not  trouble  himself  about  what 
he  perspires,  that  can  eat,  sleep,  and  ascend  a  Precipice,  as  well  as  ever. 
Insensible  Perspiration  and  Sweat  are  two  very  different  Things,  the  more 
a  Person  sweats  the  less  he  perspires ;  free  Perspiration  makes  the  Body 
light  and  chearful,  but  Sweat  faint  and  dispirited.  Perspiration  passes  off 
without  Injury,  but  Sweat  robs  the  Body  of  its  Nourishment.  He  who 
has  thro'  any  Error  lessened  Perspiration  says  he  has  catch'd  Cold ;  and  if 
the  Inconveniencies  from  thence  arising  are  not  removed  in  three  Days  by 
the  Force  of  Nature,  let  Celsus  come,  who  by  proper  Evacuations  may 
prevent  an  acute  Fever,  or  other  fatal  Consequences  that  would  punish 
the  Neglect  of  such  Means.  Persons  do  not  perspire  so  well  in  a  strange 
Bed,  because  Objects  that  are  not  frequent,  presenting  themselves,  pre 
vents  that  perfect  Blank  in  the  Mind  and  Relaxation  which  are  nec 
essary  to  produce  quiet  Sleep  and  due  Perspiration.  Tossing  and 
Dreams  are  Evidences  of  bad  Perspiration.  To  sleep  a  Nap  at  Noon,  after 
Dinner,  may  serve  good  Purposes  of  Health  to  some  weak  People,  but  it 
is  a  Practice  that  ought  to  be  cautiously  come  into,  especially  by  those 
who  incline  to  grow  fat ;  for  by  deferring  Sleep  'till  the  following  Night, 
using  gentle  Exercise,  the  perspirable  Matter  will  be  better  fitted  to  pass 
off  thro'  the  Pores.  There  is  great  Danger  in  this  sultry  Season,  of  taking 
Cold  in  the  Night,  by  sleeping  uncover'd,  with  Doors  and  Windows  open ; 
the  Heat  rarifies  the  Blood  and  Juices,  which  exhale  in  Plenty  thro'  the 
Pores ;  when  sudden  Cold  turns  back  the  transpiring  Steams,  surprizing 
Evils  ensue.  Those  Persons  who  have  sizy  Blood,  should  be  careful  to 
avoid  Cucumbers  and  cold  Fruit,  most  kinds  of  Fish,  and  all  Aliments 
that  increase  Viscidity  of  the  Juices,  which,  with  many  other  Causes  at 
this  Season,  will  join  in  causing  obstructed  Perspiration,  Dysenteries,  and 
putrid  malignant  Fevers.  From  the  Autumnal  Equinox  to  the  Winter 
Solstice  weakly  People  are  in  great  Danger,  for  where  the  Cold  increases, 
and  the  Firmness  of  the  Fibres  does  not  proportionably  increase,  the  Per 
spiration  will  be  lessened  to  a  Degree  incompatible  with  a  State  of  Health. 
It  is  an  ill  Custom  to  drink  out  of  Proportion  to  the  solid  Food  we  eat. 
When  more  Liquor  is  taken  in  than  is  sufficient  with  the  Saliva  to  dilute 
the  Aliment,  it  wears  the  secretory  Organs  faster,  hastens  Old  Age,  and 
brings  Death  the  sooner.  Robust  Persons  discharge  their  Food  for  the 
most  Part  by  Perspiration ;  those  not  so  strong  by  Urine,  and  the  Weak 


350  ALMANACK  FOR  1764. 

chiefly  by  indigested  Chyle,  and  this  is  the  Reason  the  weakest  Persons 
are  the  most  laxative,  and  discharge  much  more  by  Stool  in  Proportion  to 
the  other  Evacuations,  than  those  that  are  strong.  The  Word  of  God  and 
the  Voice  of  Nature  concur  in  affirming  the  Truth  of  this  Proposition, 
i.  e.  They  who  do  not  work  must  not  eat ;  for  plentiful  Meats  will  be 
injurious  to  Persons  who  use  but  little  Exercise ;  but  they  who  work  hard 
can  digest  the  hardest  Aliments. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

JANUARY. 

cP  }?  $  Mischief  plan'd  by  the  Savages,  and  a  factious  Disposition 
among  ourselves. 

[U  c?    §       Partnerships  in  Trade  dissolved. 

•^  ]?  9  Prudes  and  Coquets  would  marry,  but  where  are  there  hum 
ble  Servants? 

FEBRUARY. 

Q  QJ.  9  Small  Differences  amongst  true  Friends  thro'  Misunder 
standing,  portends  rash  Actions.  Hurries  and  Disasters  through  Unguard- 
eduess. 

A   c?    9       Some  Love  Affairs  end  honorable  &  happy. 

MARCH. 

Sudden  and  inflamatory  Distempers,  attack  here  and  there. 

cP  QJ.  9  Very  expensive  Differences,  accompanied  with  the  Height 
of  Ingratitude  on  one  Side,  and  Blame  on  the  other. 

O"  T?  9  Now  let  the  Ladies  that  have  got  to  Bed  safely  lie  patiently 
longer  than  usual,  if  they  love  their  own  Lives. 

APRIL. 

O"  Q[  9  The  Great  and  the  Good  join  in  Council  for  the  Benefit  of 
Mankind. 

P   (^    9      Difference  amongst  Lovers,  but  they  make  it  up  again,  again, 
and  again. 

MAY. 

tf  <3>    T?       An  ol(i  Politician  gets  into  Power,  whilst  Temerity  and  Dis 
cord  attend,  and  like  Chaos  of  old  by  Decision  more  imbroil  the  fray. 
Increasing  Heat  and  blooming  Trees, 
Delight  Mankind  as  well  as  Bees. 
The  Symptoms  of  the  present  Day, 
Denote  the  Crop  of  Flax  and  Hay. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1764.  351 

JUNE. 

cP  ©  tf      All  is  violent  Fires,  Faggots,  Falls  and  Fevers. 

Cf  €D  QJ.  These  planets  shed  their  kind  Influences  into  the  hearts  of 
Princes  and  Governors,  which  drop  in  acts  of  love  and  kindness  upon  the 
people. 

JULY. 

->^    £     §       Much  talk  and  nothing  said. 

cf  QJ.  §  The  loquacious  more  talkative  than  ever,  and  fine  Harangues 
preparing. 

COMMENCEMENT  AT  CAMBRIDGE. 

Much  Money  sunk, 
Much  Liquor  drunk. 

AUGUST. 

A   ^    §    Now  Mercury  pours  oil  on  the  tongue  of  the  Orator. 
Q    T?     £    Bungling  thieves  set  up  their  trade,  to  the  scandal  of  their 
brethren. 

A   c?    9  Now  lovers  are  gratify'd,  but  the  belly-ach  proves  dangerous. 

SEPTEMBER. 

n  2J-    §  The  fancies  of  Poets  and  Painters  enlivened  and  brightened. 
Let  those  who  ride  for  their  health  at  this  season  avoid  the  evening  air. 
King  George  III  crown'd  Sept.  22,  1761. 
A  fine  traveling  month. 

OCTOBER. 

7>ff    I?    QJ.  denotes  Peace  and  harmony  amongst  states. 
May  the  Indians  which  have  broke  league  have  no  peace  till  the  Mur 
derers  of  Capt.  Campbell1  at  Detroit  are  delivered  up. 


^Donald  Campbell,  more  frequently  called  in  the  books  Major  than 
Captain,  was  killed  at  the  siege  of  Detroit  in  1763. 

When  this  frontier  post  was  besieged  by  Pontiac  in  May,  1763,  Major 
Campbell  and  Lieut.  McDougall  were  sent  to  the  camp  of  the  Indian  chief 
at  his  suggestion,  for  a  conference.  While  they  were  thus  detained  a 
skirmish  took  place  in  which  a  popular  chief  was  slain.  McDougall  had 
escaped  before  this  time,  but  Campbell,  on  account  of  his  age  and  imper 
fect  sight,  had  been  unwilling  to  make  the  attempt.  Enraged  at  the  death 
of  a  chief,  and  further  aggravated  by  the  very  foolish  exhibition  of  his 
scalp  at  the  fort,  a  relative  of  the  chief  had  his  revenge  in  the  massacre  of 
poor  Campbell. 

He  was  seized,  bound  to  a  tree,  and  shot  to  death  with  arrows  ;  his  heart 
was  torn  out,  boiled  and  eaten,  and  a  pouch  made  of  the  skin  of  his  arm. 
The  brutal  assassin  fled,  fearing  the  vengeance  of  Pontiac,  and  it  is  but 
just  to  the  memory  of  this  celebrated  Indian  chief  to  say  that  he  was 
indignant  and  used  every  possible  exertion  to  apprehend  the  murderer. 


352  ALMANACK  FOR  1764. 

NOVEMBER. 

eP  ©  T?  The  human  frame  violently  attacked  by  distempers  from  putre 
faction  of  the  blood  and  juices. 

J3  T?  §  The  stammerers  speech  is  more  confounded,  his  health  and 
senses  attacked. 

Q  1?  tf  At  such  times  the  savages  seem  to  be  devil-driven  to 
mischief. 

DECEMBER. 

Winter,  like  death,  seizes  on  men  whether  prepar'd  or  not. 

Pain'd  stomachs,  more  than  griev'd  consciences,  now  bring  bad  hus 
bands  to  repentance. 

Some  curious  invention  conceived  at  this  time,  to  be  put  in  execution 
anon. 

Another  sextile  of  the  superiours  which  promises  peace  and  tranquility 
to  ^  1?  2J.  the  world. 


A  Page  for  the  GENTLEMEN. 

The  Minister  the  Merchant,  and  Physician, 

The  Lawyer,  and  the  deep-schem'd  Politician, 

Meet  round  the  friendly  Board,  crown'd  with  the  Bowl, 

Which  drowns  their  Cares,  and  recreates  each  Soul ; 

To  smoke  prepar'd  the  lighted  Taper  shines, 

— Hold !  e're  you  burn  this  Leaf  first  read  these  Lines. 

The  Object  of  your  looser  Hours  esteem, 

Tobacco,  Snuff,  and  Punch  shall  be  my  Theme. 

First,  of  TOBACCO,  a  Native  of  America,  called  Tobacco  by 
the  Spaniards  from  Tobago,  an  Island  in  the  West  Indies,  where 
it  grows  in  Plenty  ;  the  Indians  called  it  Petum.  Strange  that  a 
Plant  which  by  its  venemous  qualities  at  first  affects  the  Senses 
in  so  disagreeable  manner,  should  be  in  such  Vogue  and  Esteem 
by  mankind. 

Poison  that  cures,  a  Vapour  that  affords 
Content  more  solid  than  the  Smiles  of  Lords, 
Rest  to  the  Weary,  to  the  Hungry  Food, 
The  last  kind  Refuge  of  the  \Vise  and  Good, 
Inspir'd  by  thee,  dull  Cits  adjust  the  Scale 
Of  Europe's  Peace,  when  other  Statesmen  fail ; 
By  thee  protected,  and  thy  sister  Beer, 
Poets  rejoice,  nor  think  the  Bailiff  near. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1764.  353 

The  medicinal  Virtues  of  Tobacco  are  many,  but  it  should 
not  be  used  wantonly ;  for  though  it  is  good  in  cold  watry  Con 
stitutions,  in  hot  cholerick  Habits  it  is  the  reverse.  The  incom 
parable  Dr.  BOERHAVE,  in  one  of  his  Notes  remarks,  that  when 
the  Saliva  is  lavishly  spit  away,  we  then  remove  one  of  the 
strongest  Causes  of  Hunger  and  Digestion  ; — the  Chyle  prepar'd 
without  this  Fluid  is  not  of  so  good  a  condition,  and  the  Blood 
itself  is  worse  for  being  depriv'd  of  this  diluteing  Liquor.  I 
must  needs  be  of  Opinion,  says  he,  that  the  smoaking  of  Tobacco 
is  pernicious  to  lean  and  hypochondriac  Persons,  by  destroying 
their  Apetite,  and  weakening  their  Digestion :  Smoaking  and 
chewing  Tobacco  creates  Thirst,  which  to  allay  occasions  plenti 
ful  Drinking,  which  drowns  the  Stomach,  weakens  its  Tone,  and 
is  often  the  Cause  of  an  universal  ill  Habit  of  Body. 

Secondly  of  SNUFF.  It  is  reported  of  the  great  Duke  of 
Marlborough,  that  in  the  Time  of  Action,  when  he  dilated  his 
great  Soul  over  the  whole  Field  of  Battle,  he  usually  appeared 
all  besmeared  with  Snuff.  The  very  Trifles  of  great  Men,  which 
are  concomitant  with  their  great  Actions,  receive  a  Dignity  from 
the  great  Example  and  high  Character  of  the  Persons  from 
whom  they  proceed ;  so  now,  because  Mr.  P.  and  my  Lord  B. 
take  Snuff,  Mr.  W.  and  all  the  Journeymen  and  Apprentices  in 
London,  notwithstanding  they  are  in  another  Box,  take  Snuff 
also,  but  besides  its  being  fashionable  to  take  Snuff,  there  is 
some  real  Advantage  in  it ;  the  Snuff,  and  the  fine  Box  which 
contains  it,  serve  the  Beau  instead  of  Ideas  ;  when  the  Jest  goes 
round,  and  the  Laugh  is  put  upon  him,  instead  of  a  smart  Re 
partee,  he  gravely  pulls  out  his  Box,  and  says — 

I  am  a  Gentleman — and  that's  enough, 

Laugh  if  you  please,  I'll  take  a  Pinch  of  Snuff. 

But  some  Ladies  have  taken  Snuff  at  the  Gentlemen,  for 
using  it  to  Excess,  because  it  makes  them  appear  slovenly ;  and 
Men  of  Sense  affirm,  that  the  excessive  Use  of  it  produces 
Apoplexies,  and  Disorders  arising  from  Obstructions  of  the 
Animal  Spirits.  Thirdly, 

Of  mighty  PUNCH,  allow'd  by  Fate, 
To  Drown  the  Pilot  of  the  State ; 
Maudle  the  Gown-Man's  holy  Looks ; 
And  make  the  Lawyer  burn  his  Books ; 


354  ALMANACK  FOR  1764. 

Forgetful  of  his  Patient's  Ills. 

Physicks  the  Doctor  without  Pills ; 

Yet  Punch  for  Aid  is  still  implor'd, 

And  by  its  Votaries  ador'd. 

Nectarian  Dew,  pure  and  divine, 

Belov'd  by  many  more  than  Wine, 

Thou  shar'st  due  Honours  with  the  Vine ; 

When  Wine  inflames,  Punch  does  but  cheer, 

Nor  fuddles  like  the  muddy  Beer ; 

But  like  the  Fountain  runs  off  clear. 

The  Punch  Drinkers  of  this  Day  may  certainly  boast  of  an 
^ra,  wherein  that  Liquor  is  made  more  suitable  to  the  Nature 
and  Constitution  of  Man,  than  the  Punch  which  was  made  in 
the  Days  of  Yore.  That  you  may  know  what  Punch  was  an 
Hundred  Years  ago,  I  shall  give  you  a  Receipt  verbatim  from 
Doctor  Salmon,  to  make  a  Bowl  of  Punch,  viz. 

"  Fair  Water  two  Quarts,  pure  Limejuice  a  Pint,  treble 
"  refined  Sugar,  3  Quarters  of  a  pound,  or  better,  mix  and  per- 
"  fectly  dissolve  the  Sugar,  then  add  of  choice  Brandy  3  Pints, 
"  stirring  them  well  together,  and  grating  in  one  Nutmeg." 

But  to  make  a  modern  Bowl  of  Punch  a  la  mode,  to  the  above 
Quantity  of  Water,  6  Lisbon  Lemons,  not  quite  so  much  Sugar, 
one  sixth  part  of  the  Spirits,  and  the  Nutmeg  to  be  omitted. 

To  the  lost  Wretch,  who  ceaseless  craves  the  Bowl, 
Th'  inebriating  Draught  such  Pleasure  gives, 
That  Reason  and  Religion  both  in  vain, 
Their  pure  and  heavenly  Prohibitions  urge. 

Yet  modern  Punch  bids  fair  to  cheat  the  Drunkard  into  Tem 
perance  ;  ior  he  may  sooner  hurt  his  Belly  than  his  Brains  by 
such  Liquor. — The  Acid  of  the  Fruit,  and  Alkali  of  the  Spirits 
being  mixed,  neutralize  the  contrary  Salts  of  each  Ingredient, 
tho'  the  Acid  is  predominant ;  and  the  plentiful  use  of  this 
Liquor  is  hurtful  to  such  as  have  weak  Bile,  and  are  subject  to 
Diseases  arising  from  Acidity,  as  flatulent  Cholics,  Dysenteries 
and  the  like. 


An  Introduction  to  AGRICULTURE. 

If  we  may  judge  by  Analogy,  and  the  progressive  Increase 
of  the  Inhabitants  of  this  Continent,  the  Kingdoms  of  the  Earth, 


ALMANACK    FOR    1764.  355 

and  the  Glory  of  the  World  will  be  transplanted  into  AMERICA  : 
But  the  Study  and  Practice  of  Agriculture  must  go  Hand  in 
Hand  with  our  Increase ;  for  all  the  Policy  and  Learning  in  the 
World  will  not  enable  us  to  become  a  rich,  flourishing  and  happy 
People,  without  the  Knowledge  and  Practice  of  Agriculture. 
"The  vast  and  noble  Scenes  of  Nature  infinitely  excel  the  pitiful 
Shifts  of  Policy.  The  Lands  here  are  taken  from  a  State  of 
Nature,  and  we  improve  them  by  the  Strength  of  Nature :  when 
one  Piece  of  Land  is  worn  out,  we  throw  it  by:  But  the  Art  of 
Husbandry  teaches  us  how  to  make  these  Lands  continue  fertile, 
and  produce  Crops  by  Management  and  Manure,  and  how  to 
adapt  the  Manure  to  its  proper  Soil.  I  have  Room  only  to  give 
you  a  Description  of  one  Species  of  Manure,  of  great  Utility  in 
Husbandry,  but  little  understood  in  America ;  I  mean  Marie.  It 
lies  under  the  Surface  of  the  Earth,  it  is  often  flung  up  in  Ditches, 
boggy  Lands  and  clayey  Soils,  marshy  Levels  often  cover  it,  and 
sandy  Land  is  not  destitute  of  it,  but  then  it  lies  deeper.  It's 
Description  in  the  New  System  of  Agriculture  (a  Book  so  called) 
is  in  the  following  Words:  "The  Colour  of  Marie  is  either  red, 
brown,  yellow,  blue,  grey,  or  mixed :  It  is  to  be  known  by  its 
pure  and  uncompounded  Nature ;  there  are  many  Marks  to  dis 
tinguish  it  by,  such  as  its  breaking  into  little  square  Bits,  its 
falling  easily  to  Pieces  by  the  Force  of  a  Blow,  or  upon  being 
exposed  to  the  Sun  and  Frost,  its  feeling  fat  and  oily,  shining 
when  it  is  dry. — But  the  most  unerring  Way  to  distinguish  and 
know  it  from  any  other  Substance,  is,  to  break  a  Piece  as  large 
as  a  Nutmeg,  and  when  it  is  quite  dry,  drop  it  to  the  Bottom  of 
a  Glass  of  clear  Water  ;  where,  if  it  be  right,  it  will  dissolve  and 
crumble  as  it  were  into  Dust  in  a  very  little  Time,  shooting  up 
Sparkles  to  the  Surface  of  the  Water." — This  I  have  mentioned 
that  my  Countrymen  may  be  upon  the  Look  out,  in  order  to 
make  Discoveries  of  this  important  Article  of  Manure.  Another 
Year  perhaps  I  may  give  you  some  further  Hints  upon  this 

Subject. 1  should  conclude,  but  that  many  People  think  the 

Earth  produces  Grass  spontaneously;  a  great  Mistake  this,  for 
the  Seeds  of  Grass  are  strangely  scatter'd  into  all  Places,  by  Birds 
and  Beasts,  Winds  and  Water,  and  after  this  Manner  was  the 
famous  Fowl-Meadow-Grass  brought  into  a  spacious  Meadow 
upon  Nepo7iset  River  iu  Dedham,  called  Fowl  Meadow,  by  the 


356  ALMANACK  FOR  1764. 

wild  Fowl  that  frequent  the  Place ;  the  Grass  took  its  Name  from 
the  Place  where  it  made  its  first  Appearance  about  50  Years  ago; 
the  Seed  is  now  manufactured  and  carried  into  many  Parts  of 
the  Country ;  it  produces  gre.at  Crops  on  the  hard  Land,  Banks 
of  Rivers  and  Brooks,  and  Meadows  that  can  be  flooded  and 

drained. Clover  is  also  a  Species  of  Grass  that's  well  known 

to  produce  great  Crops  of  an  excellent  Kind.  Flanders  produces 
the  Seed  in  the  greatest  Perfection ;  Doctor  Gardiner  of  Boston 
has  imported  the  red  and  white  Clover  Seed  from  thence;  and 
'tis  to  be  noted  that  Garden  and  Grass  Seeds  thrive  best  when 

transplanted  from  a  foreign  Soil. This  is  also  evident  by  the 

Quantities  of  Flax-Seed,  which  every  Year  is  transported  from 

this  Continent  to  Ireland. The  Merchants  in  Boston  give  Cash 

for  Flax  Seed. 


ADVERTISEMENT. 

Some  Years  ago  the  Art  of  Paper-Making  was  set  up  in  this 
Province,  tho'  for  want  of  Persons  that  understood  the  Business, 
it  failed ;  but  lately  one  Mr.  Clark,  has  carried  it  on  at  the  Mills 
in  Milton,  to  as  great  Perfection  as  at  Pennsylvania :  and  all  the 
Discouragement  the  Manufacture  at  present  meets  with,  is  the 
want  of  RAGS. — If  the  Heads  of  Families  would  therefore  order 
their  Children  and  Servants  to  collect  and  save  the  Rags  that 
are  often  thrown  away,  they  would  not  only  receive  a  valuable 
consideration  therefor,  but  promote  a  Manufacture,  whereby  the 
Exportation  of  some  Thousands  of  Pounds  a  Year  would  be 
saved  to  this  Province. 

Cash  for  RAGS  of  Linen,  coarse  &  fine,  old  Sail  Cloth,  Cotton 
or  Checks,  will  be  given  by  Mr.  Boicc,  near  the  South  Battery  in 
Boston,  or  at  the  Paper-Mills  in  Milton.^ 


1764.— Trouble  with  the  Indians  attributed  to  "  Old  Nick," 
constitutes  the  thread  of  the  title  page  verse;  a  short  lecture  on  Astrology 
is  directed  to  the  "  Kind  Readers,"  and  is  laudatory,  not  only  of  the 

1  The  first  paper  mill  in  New  England  was  set  up  with  the  aid  of  the 
Massachusetts  legislature,  by  Daniel  Henchman,  a  bookseller  of  Boston, 
in  1730. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1764.  357 

Philosophical  foundation  of  the  Science,  but  of  the  glorious  discoveries  in 
Electricity  made  by  the  Hon.  Bostonian,  Benjamin  Franklin,  Esq. 

The  doctor  announces  for  the  captions  of  each  Monthly  Page,  instead 
of  Verses,  some  hints  on  the  "  Sanctorian  Doctrine  of  Perspiration"  and 
the  advice  therein  is  quaint  and  interesting  not  only  to  the  latter  day 
physician,  but  to  his  patient. 

An  advertisement  to  encourage  the  Art  of  Paper-Making  in  the  colony 
appears  this  year,  and  is  the  first  trade  announcement  to  appear  in  Ames"1 
Almanack. 

A  practical  "  Introduction  to  Agriculture "  closes  the  essays  in  this 
year's  pamphlet. 

The  predictions  in  the  weather  column,  as  noted  in  the  preliminary 
discourse  on  the  subject,  are  deduced  from  Astrological  observations  and 
aspects,  and  probably  more  to  illustrate  the  Science  than  to  forecast  the 
future. 

A  Voice  from  the  Tavern  speaks  in  the  latter  pages  this  year,  under  the 
caption  of  "A  Page  for  the  Gentlemen,"  and  conveys  the  Innkeeper- 
Physician's  sentiments  on  Tobacco,  Snuff  and  Punch. 

If  there  ever  was  anything  in  Ames  Almanack,  which  more  than 
another  caused  my  heart  to  go  out  to  that  enterprising  New  England 
Astronomer-Physician,  it  was  the  knowledge  of  the  fact  that  he  was  an 
inn-keeper,  who  fully  appreciated  the  importance  of  his  calling,  and 
hesitated  not  to  own  the  "  sorry  trade,"  yet  withal,  to  caution  the  guest 
against  the  serpent  that  lurked  within  the  boivl. 

An  Ames*  "  Almanack  for  1764"  was  the  first  of  his  publications  which 
came  into  my  hands.  I  treasured  it  highly,  reading  and  re-reading  its 
"  Page  for  the  Gentlemen,"  until,  on  one  occasion  I  introduced  a  portion 
of  its  poetry  in  some  after  dinner  remarks,  to  a  party  of  gentlemen  who 
were  trying  to  persuade  themselves  that  they  were  having  a  "  real  jolly 
time,"  at  a  banquet,  without  any  wine.  It  was  really  the  saddest  occasion 
that  I  ever  attended.  Think  of  it!  No  wine  :  yet  every  one  at  that  table 
seated  himself  for  the  purpose  of  enjoying  "  a  feast  of  reason  and  a  flow 
of  soul;" — and  behold,  their  countenances  gave  one  the  idea  that  each 
was  contemplating  "  funeral  baked  meats." 

A  banquet  without  wine  !  My  !  What  would  the  marriage  feast  at  Cana 
have  amounted  to  if  the  cistern  water  had  not  been  tampered  with,  and 
converted  to  a  "  stimulator  of  the  conscience  and  arouser  of  the  mental 
faculties ; "  of  so  much  advantage  at  such  gatherings,  in  producing  the 
social  and  home-like  feeling  always  to  be  desired. 

What  repute  could  Noah1  have  gained  beyond  ~h.\<3  forty  days  experience 
as  a  navigator?  I  ask  if  his  name  and  fame  would  have  been  treasured 
so  long  and  well,  had  he  not  experimented  with  the  grape,  and  its  effects, 
handing  down  to  us  the  tradition,  in  connection  therewith. 

1  The  honored  founder  of  the  "  Royal  Ark  Mariners,"  known  to  a 
select  few  as  the  "  Swivel-tailed  Marines." 


358  ALMANACK  FOR  1764. 

"  The  Grape  that  can  with  Logic  absolute 
The  Two-and  Seventy  jarring  Sects  confute  : 
The  potent  Alchemist  that  in  a  trice 
Life's  leaden  Metal  into  Gold  transmute." 

I  went  to  Dedham  a  few  years  ago. — I  had  read  so  much  about  the 
quaint  old  town,  that  I  had  mentally  erected,  and  soon  came  to  believe 
that  I  should  find  there  the  veritable  old  Tavern  in  which  the  Almanacks 
were  written  ;  where  "  Physick  "  was  dispensed,  where  the  jovial,  heartyr 
grand  old  landlord  had  "  welcomed  the  coming,  sped  the  parting  guest." 

A  hostelry,  where  the  mail  coach  on  His  Majesty's  service  had  reg 
ularly  stopped,  where  the  horses  were  changed,  and  passengers  either 
alighted  for  a  stay,  or  to  step  in  for  a  "  drop  of  something  comforting." 
Exchanging  pleasant  greetings  the  while  with  the  host,  and  granting  a 
smile  for  a  "curtsey,"  to  the  plumpest  and  cheeriest  of  barmaids. 

But,  alas !  I  didn't  find  it— nor  even  a  substitute  for  it.  But  I  did  find 
an  Historical  Society,  and  as  genial  and  enthusiastic  a  gathering  of  anti 
quarian  Students  as  one  could  ever  desire  to  meet. 

No  wine  needed  in  that  company  to  make  the  conversation  "go."  It 
went  of  its  own  accord,  and  when  I  departed,  I  felt  that  I  had  been 
"admitted  a  freeman  of  Dedham,"  if  not  created  an  absolute  New  Eng- 
lander. 

I  saw  the  spot  where  the  old  tavern  stood,  but  "modern  evidences"1 
only  existed  to  identify  its  location,  with  the  exception  of  the  "  Fisher 
Ames  Elm"  the  mute  witness  of  its  latter  days. 

The  Priestess  of  this  ruin'd  shrine, 

Unable  to  survive  the  stroke, 
Presents  no  more  the  ruddy  wine, 

Her  glasses  gone,  her  china  broke. 

The  friendly  Host,  whose  social  hand 

Accosted  strangers  at  the  door, 
Has  left  at  length  his  wonted  stand, 

And  greets  the  weary  guest  no  more. 

Old  creeping  time,  that  brings  decay, 

Might  yet  have  spar'd  these  mouldering  walls 

Alike  beneath  whose  potent  sway 
A  temple  or  a  tavern  falls. 

IMPROVEMENT  was  the  ruffian  blast 

Whose  vandal  breath  rent  wall  and  door 
And  all  the  roof  to  ruin  cast, 

The  roof  that  shelter'd  us  before. 

Your  wrath  appeas'd,  I  pray  be  kind 

If  Mopsus  should  the  dome  renew  ; 
That  we  again  may  quaff  his  wine, 

Again  collect  our  jovial  crew. 

Philip  Frcneau — slightly  altered  to  fit  the  case. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1764.  359 


On  the  nth  day  of  July,  1764,  Dr.  Nathaniel  Ames  died,  aged  56  years. 

He  had  performed  nearly,  if  not  quite  all  the  calculations  for  the 
Almanack  for  the  year  1765,  which  was  completed  by  his  son,  Nathaniel 
Ames,  Jr.,  and  from  whose  hands  this,  as  well  as  the  subsequent  almanacks 
were  issued. 

At  a  person's  decease  there  are  those  who  would  not  be  satisfied  to  be 
informed  in  answer  to  an  enquiry,  that  the  decedent  left  all  he  possessed, 
but  would  desire  the  details  of  the  estate. 

While  the  returns  of  the  appraisers  have  been  placed  in  my  hands, 
setting  forth  the  items  of  the  Doctor's  possessions  in  wigs,  pots,  steers, 
negroes,  pills,  potions,  medicines,  tubs,  horses,  carts,  etc.,  etc.,  I  have 
gathered  the  same  into  the  grand  totals  of: 

Real  Estate,  ^"1561,  43,  yd. 

Personal  Estate,  -      £  407,  93, 


^1968,  145,  i#a. 

From  an  account  rendered  by  Richard  Draper,  (administrator  of  his 
father,  John  Draper)  against  Dr.  Ames'  estate,  we  find  the  value  of  the 
"  copy  of  an  almanack  "  for  a  number  of  years : 

For  the  almanacks  from  1751-1757  he  received  £\Q:  13  : 4  for  each  issue. 
For  1758  he  received  ^12,  and  for  1759  ^13  :  6 : 8  ;  making  a  total  of  ^  100 
for  nine  years. 

The  following  letter  written  to  Dr.  Nathaniel  Ames,  Jr.,  will  show  how 
the  almanack  business  was  transacted,  and  the  desirability  of  such  publi 
cations  : — 

BOSTON,  August  25,  1764. 
SR. 

You  did  not  call  the  last  time  you  were  in  Town,  to  inform  me  whether 
you  would  accept  of  the  offer  I  then  made  for  the  Copy  of  the  Almanack 
for  1765 — upon  which  I  think  I  am  not  under  obligations  now  to  stand 
to  that  offer.  If  you  have  any  further  Proposals  to  make  it  must  be 
speedy — a  Gentleman  has  made  us  an  offer  of  a  Copy,  which  will  no 
doubt  be  acceptable,  for  a  very  small  Consideration,  and  shall  send  him  an 
Answer  this  Day  or  on  Monday,  and  if  he  can  finish  it  next  Week,  shall 
immediately  put  into  the  Press,  as  the  Booksellers  will  have  one  Lowe's^ 
out  for  sale,  before  the  Printers  can  have  a  Chance  of  publishing  your's, 
if  we  agree  for  the  Copy  your  Father  left. — 

I  here  enclose  you  the  account  between  your  Father  &  mine,  which  was 
never  settled,  and  by  which  you  will  see  there  is  a  Ballance  due  to  J. 
Draper  /"6ios4^d — lawful  money.  And  the  offer  I  now  make  is  that 

1  Nathaniel  I/ow  published  an  Almanack  at  Boston  from  1762  until 
early  in  the  present  century. 


360  ALMANACK    FOR    1765. 

you  will  deliver  me  the  Copy  by  the  ist  Day  of  September,  I  will  allow 
you  the  £  100  Old  Tenor  &  the  Ballance  of  the  Account,  as  above,  which 
will  be  in  the  whole  £  20  lawful  money — a  sum  larger  than  ever  was  given 
(by  more  than  a  third  Part)  or  than  ever  expected  by  your  Father,  till  I 
took  it  in  Hand  in  the  Year  1760-1. 

I  am  Sir  your  humble  Servant 

RICHARD  DRAPER. 

The  Administrators  settled  on  the  terms  proposed.     (Ed.) 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1765 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 


BOSTON  :  Printed  and  Sold  by  R.  and  5.  Draper,  in  Newbury  street ; 
Edes  and  Gill  and  Green  and  Russell,  in  Queen  street ;  and  T.  &y.  Fleet 
at  the  Heart  and  Crown  in  Cornhill.     Sold  also  by  the  Booksellers. 
Price :  3^.  <\d.  per  Dozen,  and  7  Coppers  single. 


As  thro'  the  Zodiack  moves  the  changing  Year, 
The  varying  Stars  go  down  and  disappear ; 
The  vernal  Bloom  the  Summer  Suns  destroy, 
And  barren  Winter  blasts  th'  Autumnal  Joy  : 
So  change  the  Human  Race,  around  the  Ball, 
And  gliding  Generations  rise  and  fall. 
AMES  who  in  annual  Labours  long  approv'd, 
*   The  Page  consulted  and  the  Man  belov'd, 
Rapt  thro'  th'  Etherial  Space  th'  exalted  Soul, 
Sees  Stars  and  Planets  far  beneath  him  roll  : 
But  while  from  Earth  the  Parent  Mind  is  flown, 
The  grateful  Publick  bless  the  rising  Son. 

READER. 

By  a  most  heavy  distressing  Stroke  of  Providence,  and  seeing 
it  was  the  Will  of  Heaven,  I  must  not  repine,  being  bereaved  of 
the  Author  of  Part  of  these  Calculations,  viz.  the  Ephemeris  of 
the  Planets  and  Places,  and  the  Rising  and  Setting  of  the  Sun 
and  Moon,  for  the  fortieth  Almanack  he  ever  published ;  I,  his 


ALMANACK   FOR    1765.  361 

Son,  am  thus  forced,  as  it  were,  to  make  my  unexpected,  prema 
ture  Appearance  in  Public  ;  I  was  induced  to  finish  this  Alma 
nack  rather  to  please  some  intimate  Friends,  who  were  urgent  to 
have  it  continued  by  the  same  Name  than  by  the  Prospect  of  the 
Reward,  which  is  indeed  very  small,  or  by  any  Fondness  for 
commencing  Author.  I  have  been  very  anxious  to  have  it 
become  as  useful  as  possible  to  those  whose  Oracle  is  an  Alma 
nack,  such  as  are  destitute  of  any  other  periodical  Performance, 
as  Magazines,  or  the  like,  or  even  News  Papers :  The  Piece  on 
Agriculture  I  imagin'd  might  be  as  useful  as  any  Thing,  seeing 
such  Instructions  can  be  convey'd  thro'  no  other  Channel  so 
conveniently  as  this  to  those  Persons  who  practice  that  Art ;  and 
any  Observations  or  Improvements  in  that,  or  any  Art  or  Manu 
facture,  that  would  be  really  useful  to  the  Community,  will  be 
very  acceptable  from  any  Gentlemen  that  please  to  favour  me 
with  'em  against  another  Year  ;  for  it  is  now  become  absolutely 
necessary  that  we  begin  to  cultivate  every  Art  and  Manufacture 
that  will  help  us  to  make  Remittances  to  our  Mother  Country, 
for  the  vast  Quantities  of  Broad  Cloths,  and  a  Multitude  of  other 
less  necessary  Articles,  for  which  this  Country  is  now  in  debt : 
And  also  to  enable  us  to  bear  up  under  the  heavy  Duties  that 
have  been  laid  on  us  since  the  Conclusion  of  the  War,  when  one 
great  Source  of  our  Affluence  was  cut  off  that  supported  so  many 
idle  Persons  both  in  the  Army  and  at  Home,  in  so  great  Ease, 
that  finding  they  must  get  a  Living  some  how  or  other,  and 
having  but  poor  Stomachs  to  return  to  the  Stall  or  Plough,  from 
whence  they  came ;  some  of  them  commence  Quacks,  and  call 
themselves  Doctors,  having  seen  a  Man  that  saw  another  Man 
cured  of  a  very  foul  Gunshot  by  hot  Oil  of  Turpentine,  and  heard 
their  Grandmother  say  that  Carduus  Tea  will  vomit,  and  Fifing- 
ers  are  very  cooling ;  or  perhaps  having  exercis'd  their  Skill  on 
passive  Beasts,  at  length  have  the  Audacity  to  practice  their 
Butchery  on  the  human  Race ;  and  upon  the  slightest  occasions, 
or  oftener  none  at  all,  absent  themselves  from  public  Worship 
to  be  thought  Men  of  Business :  thus  without  one  qualification 
necessary  for  a  Physician  they  become  famous  Water  Gruel 
Doctors. 

There  is  another  Herd  of  these  Drones  as  troublesome  to  the 
Gentlemen  of  the  Bar,  as  the  other  is  despicable  in  the  Eye  of  a 


362  ALMANACK   FOR    1765. 

regular  bred  Physician,  which  are  called  Petty foggers ;  this  is  a 
Race  made  up,  for  the  most  part,  of  the  Dregs  of  Misfortune  and 
Misconduct,  join'd  with  a  Deal  of  low  Wit,  and  such  a  Sip  of 
Learning  as  just  intoxicates  the  Brain,  as  Pope  has  it,  who 
having  suffered  a  Course  of  Law  repeatedly,  in  Actions  of  Debt, 
Trespass,  and  perhaps  criminal  Actions  too,  at  last  get  the  Form 
of  a  Declaration  pretty  perfectly  by  Heart,  run  off  to  some  differ 
ent  Part  of  the  Continent,  fill  up  Writs  in  the  most  trifling 
Causes,  exciting  Quarrels,  thereby  becoming  downright  Barra 
tors,  the  very  Pest  of  Society  ;  and  perhaps  if  they  have  a  good 
Stock  of  Dissimulation  they  may  get  a  certain  Commission  that 
commands  my  Silence. 

"  Titles  are  Marks  of  honest  Men,  and  wise, 
"  The  Fool  or  Knave  that  wears  a  Title,  lies. 

These  are  two  Evils  which  it  seems  strange  to  my  Shortsight 
edness,  the  Legislature  of  New  England  has  not  found  a  remedy, 
for,  seeing  these  Animals  might  be  employed  for  the  Good  of  the 
Common  Wealth  in  subduing  our  stubborn  Soil,  or  in  some  other 
handy  Work. 

There  is  a  third  Species  of  these  Clogs  on  our  growing 
Wealth,  as  worthless  as  either  of  the  former,  who  under  the 
specious  Pretence  of  Religion,  and  an  alarming  Conscience,  walk 
to  and  fro,  up  and  down  the  Earth,  sowing  Sedition  among 
Churches,  raising  Disputes  about  holy  Trifles,  destroying  that 
universal  Charity  that  ought  to  warm  the  Breast  of  every 
Christian  towards  every  Class  of  Men  that  adore  one  Being  of 
infinite  Wisdom  and  Power,  whether  they  call  him  JEHOVAH  or 
Jupiter,  whether  they  worship  him  prostrate  and  kneeling,  or 
standing  and  setting  ;  whether  they  light  up  Wax  Tapers  at 
Noon  Day  to  celebrate  him,  or  are  contented  with  the  grand 
Luminary  which  he  has  placed  in  this  "  azure  Vault,"  whether 
they  who  are  appointed  to  tell  us  we  must  love  Him,  be  cloath'd 
in  a  white  Robe,  a  black  Gown,  or  black  Coat ;  whether  the 
Colour  of  their  Skin  happens  to  be  white,  olive  or  sable ; 
whether  they  speak  our  own,  or  an  unknown  Language ; 
whether  they  wear  an  embroidered  Coat  and  laced  Hat,  or  a  plain 
grey,  woollen  Coat  and  flopp'd  Hat.  Not  only  these  Conditions 
unequal  indeed  to  Men  of  narrow  Minds  perfectly  equal  in  the 
Eye  of  the  great  Creator,  but  all  the  little  foolish  Differences  of 


ALMANACK    FOR    1765.  363 

Opinion,  are  made  the  signals  of  Hatred  and  Persecution,  by 
these  lay  Pretenders,  to  serve  that  Being,  who  is  so  independent 
of  every  Thing  created,  that  even  the  highest  Angel  can  do  him 
no  Service,  much  less  such  diminutive  Atoms  as  Men,  otherwise 
than  by  serving  one  another.  Thus  Reader,  you  have  not  my 
Opinion  alone,  but  that  of  every  Man  of  Sense,  viz :  That 
every  one  ought  to  act  in  his  own  Sphere,  that  the  Mechanics 
ought  to  diligently  pursue  their  respective  Occupations,  nor 
trouble  their  Heads  any  further  with  Law,  Physic  or  Divinity, 
than  immediately  concerns  their  own  Wealth,  Health,  or  Salva 
tion  ;  nor  until  some  such  Regulations  take  Place,  shall  we  ever 
be  a  flourishing  people. 

The  Eclipse  on  the  2ist  of  March,  as  calculated  and  projected 
from  the  Tables  of  the  latest  Author  on  that  Subject  and  who  is 
very  much  commended  by  the  Reviewers,  will  be  invisible  in 
Boston  ;  but  as  done  by  the  greatest  Mathematician  in  America, 
from  the  Tables  of  the  then  greatest  Astronomer  in  Europe, 
it  will  be  a  small  Eclipse,  a  little  before  the  Time  I  have  said ; 
but  every  one  knows  on  whose  calculations  we  ought  most  to 
depend.  It  is  hoped  that  Gentlemen  of  Curiosity,  especially 
such  as  are  favoured  with  a  clear  Horrison  and  Telescopes  will 
make  critical  Observations.  The  Title  Page  Verse  is  the  Favour 
of  a  worthy  Friend.  Reader,  adieu  ! 

N.  AMES. 


JANUARY.          Hail  sacred  Wisdom,  in  whose  blest  Abode, 
Unravell'd  Nature  clearly  speaks  the  God ; 
Where  Virtue's  Sons  shall  full  Protection  find, 
Where  Vice  or  Dullness  ne'er  disturb  the  Mind, 
Where  Love  and  Joy  eternally  reside, 
Nor  Fame  and  Affluence  swell  the  Mind  with  Pride. 


FEBRUARY.      O  Grant  me  Pow'r,  by  thy  instructive  Rays, 

To  Thee  and  Virtue,  tune  some  worthy  Lays ; 

Exalt  my  Youth  with  true  Poetic  Fire. 

To  grace  the  Works  of  my  departed  Sire  ! 

With  Tho'ts  like  Milton;  Pope's  smooth  moral  Song ; 

The  Dean's  deep  Wit ;  or  Lord  of  Satyr,  Young; 

The  soft  Distress  of  Shenstone's  rural  Theme ; 

Cervante's  Mirth  ;  or  Hammond's  tender  Scene. 


364 

MARCH. 


APRIL. 


MAY. 


JUNE. 


JULY. 


AUGUST. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1765. 

From  these  Examples  could  I  catch  the  Flame, 
To  please  the  Sage,  and  shun  the  Critic's  Blame ; 
Or  better  still ;  our  Vices  to  expose  ; 
Convince  the  Mind  what  joy  from  Virtue  flows  ; 
On  Fancy's  Wings  then  upwards  would  I  soar, 
And  bless  the  Muse  for  Strains  with  me  she  bore. 


•'  O  !  What  a  vain,  an  empty  Thing  is  Man, 

Blown  by  each  Tempest  of  uncertain  Fate  ! 

Mov'd  by  no  certain  Rule,  or  settled  Plan, 
And  still  unhappy  in  his  happiest  State. 

A  mere  Machine,  by  ev'ry  Passion  led  ; 
By  Vice  undone,  by  Virtue  nourished." 


'As  from  a  late  Debauch,  the  Drunkard  reels, 

(True  human  Nature,  undisguis'd  by  Art) 
Nor  in  his  Breast  a  Beam  of  Reason  feels, 

To  move  his  Actions,  or  to  mend  his  Heart. 
So  are  Mankind  uncapable  of  Thought, 
'Till  Reason  guides,  and  Wisdom  Sense  has  brought.' 


"  Upon  this  World,  this  Pageantry  of  Show, 

This  gaudy,  glaring,  chequer'd  Masquerade, 

Each  wishes  something,  Wisdom  can't  bestow, 
And  seeking  Greatness,  is  of  Want  afraid. 

To  Thee  !  sage  Goddess,  for  my  self  I  call ; 

I  ask  no  Greatness  and  I  fear  no  fall." 


Life  is  a  Jest ;  tho'  most  mistake  in  this, 

'  Till  Death  draws  nigh,  they  deem  it  real  Bliss  ; 

The  Wise  and  Good  the  Pangs  of  Death  shall  know 

Tho'  Virtue,  always  mitigates  its  Woe. 
The  Atom,  Monarch,  or  like  Atom,  Slave, 
Shall  both  be  swallowed  in  th'  insatiate  Grave. 


"  Did  Fortune,  what  to  few  she'll  give, 
Allow  me  make  my  Choice  to  live  ; 
I  would  not  seek  an  envy'd  Seat, 

Or  daily  Visits  of  the  Great ; 
Nor  yet  would  my  Ambition  fall, 
To  meagre  want's  deserted  Hall." 


SEPTEMBER.  "For  Use,  not  Shew,  my  House  should  stand 
Amid  a  spot  of  fertile  Land ; 


ALMANACK    FOR    1765. 


365 


OCTOBER. 


NOVEMBER. 


DECEMBER 


A  Lake  below ;  around  a  Wood ; 

Here  rise  a  Rock — there  rush  a  Flood 
A  Mountain  would  in  Prospect  rise, 
And  bear  the  grey  Mist  to  the  Skies." 


"  When  in  some  dark  Retreat  I  sit, 
Be  near  a  Friend,  a  Man  of  Wit, 
Of  Heart  sincere,  and  Converse  free, 

The  Lover  of  Mankind  and  me, 
Who,  should  the  World  tumultuous  roar, 
Could  calmly  see  the  Storm  ashore." 

How  Happy's  He !  whose  guiltless  Mind, 
Is  to  his  native  Fields  confin'd  ; 
Bless'd  with  his  State,  and  craves  no  more 
Than  Heav'n  allow'd  his  Sires  before  ; 
No  Care  by  Day  disturbs  his  Breast, 
At  Night  he  steeps  his  Brows  in  Rest. 


If  Life  you  want,  undash'd  with  Woe, 
Serene  enjoy  the  instant  Now  ; 
If  Fortune  smiles,  enjoy  the  Ray, 
And  smile  her  very  Gloom  away ; 
Let  Tempests  sweep  and  Billows  roar, 
The  Storm  of  Life  shall  soon  be  o'er. 


If  any  good  House  of  Entertainment  is  omitted,  or  any 
inserted  that  do  not  keep  Tavern ;  also  if  there  are  any  Errors 
in  the  Distances  of  the  Stages,  it  is  desired  that  those  who  live 
at  or  near  the  Places  where  the  Mistakes  are,  would  send  a  letter 
to  Richard  &  Samuel  Draper,  Printers  in  Boston,  free  of  Charge, 
and  they  shall  be  rectified. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

Don't  expect  any  Thing  uncommon  in  the  Weather  this  Year. 

It  is  better  to  wear  a  homespun  Coat,  than  lose  our  LIBERTY. 

A  Man  of  Sense  can  Artifice  disdain ;  as  Men  of  Wealth  may  venture 
to  dress  plain. 

Those  who  can  keep  House  now  without  hurting  their  business,  are 
best  off. 


366  ALMANACK  FOR  1765. 

It's  time  to  think  of  raising  Hemp  &  Flax,  if  we've  a  Mind  to  save  a 
Tax. 

News  from  afar,  of  distant  War,  Many  Schemes  prove  abortive. 


Any  Winds  that  come  now  you  may  denominate  March  Winds. 
Some  literary  Performances  usher'd  into  Light  and  soon  disappear. 
New  England  Luxury  cannot  be  supported  unless  more  of  her  Com- 
modies  are  exported. 

Fools  and  Prodigals,  as  well  as  the  Wise  &  Industrious  are  necessary 
to  build  a  nourishing  State. 

Are  Provisions  dear  ?  Whose  Fault  is  that  as  long  as  your  Ground  is 
untill'd  and  Hands  unemploy'd. 

Fine  Times  for  those  who  would  make  their  Fortunes  in  new  Settle 
ments. 

A  Suit  of  Green  delights  the  Bye,  which  Nature  puts  on  gradually. 


Some  brave  Spirits  glow  with  patriotic  Ardor. 
Many  are  governed  by  Interest,  but  more  by  Whim. 
Strange  Fate  of  human  Things. 
How  Nature  every  Day  new  Wonders  bring. 

This  Conjunction  of  9   §   (Venus  &  Mercury)  promises  much  Fruit  of 
licentious  Love  next  Winter. 


Now  let  the  curious  with  Pleasure  view  the  liquid  Flame  dart  down 
the  electric  Rod  ! 

Ladies  be  gay  and  richly  attir'd,  if  from  no  other  Motive  you  can  be 
admir'd. 

When  Adam  dalve  and  Eve  span,  who  was  then  the  Gentleman  ? 

In  vain  we  fly  from  Care,  the  Monster  in  our  Breasts  we  bear. 

Your  Glasses,  at  present,  prognosticate  best  concerning  the  Weather, 
seeing  the  Stars  refuse. 

The  Farmer  only  independent  lives,  he  asks  but  what  indulgent  Nature 
gives. 

Bolus  with  his  Company  of  Winds  rush  from  their  Confinement  bear- 
down  all  before  them  producing  some  Rain. 

Anniversary  of  the  AUTHOR'S  Death  (July  n,  1764.) 


Many  Crapulcs^-  to  Day,  give  the  Head-ach  to  the  Gay. 

The  most  egregious  Folly  that  I  can  see,  is  a  Man  living  in  Luxury. 

1A  Complaint  once  common  among  the  "  Sons  of  Malta." 


ALMANACK    FOR    1765.  367 

Nothing  more  certain  than  Death,  or  more  uncertain  than  the  Time. 

With  loads  of  Fruit  the  Trees  do  bend  ;  but  soon  they're  pluck'd  by 
ev'ry  Hand. 

Vomitings  and  Purgings  attack  here  and  there. 

Why  are  Quacks  and  Rhum  alike  ?  because  they  both  kill  with  Impunity. 

A  Man  may  be  too  good  a  Poet  as  well  as  too  good  a  Fiddler. 

The  Farmer,  if  he  minds  his  own  Business,  only,  has  the  best  Title  to 
Happiness  of  any  Man.  

Signs  of  foul  Weather,  which  if  ever  so  foul  is  better  than  the  Gamester 
and  Drunkard  deserve.  The  Sight  of  one  Drunkard  is  better  than  twenty 
Sermons  would  be  without  it,  to  prevent  Drunkeness. 

Thunder,  the  grand  Artillery  of  Heaven  !  heard  afar. 

Perhaps  the  Sextons  will  see  more  prosperous  Times  than  for  some 
Years  past. 

No  rain  without  a  sprinkling. 


Cease  to  speak  ill  of  others  least  you  hear  of  your  own  Misdeeds. 

A  very  good  Time  to  recruit  a  crazy,  wasting  Carcase,  by  gentle  Exer 
cise  on  Horseback. 

Weather  being  pretty  pleasant,  if  not  too  cold. 

Where  a  Vot'ry  of  Venus  has  pitched  his  Tent,  there  he  must  abide 
tho'  his  Int'rest  be  spent. 

A  mighty  Emulation  among  the  Great !  but  for  what  ?  who  shall  acquire 
the  best  Estate. 

Behold  the  Change  in  Nature's  Face ;  this,  Ladies,  too,  will  be  your 
Case !  

Less  Silk  &  Lace,  more  Wool  and  Flax,  must  be  in  vogue  with  the 
Mobility,  before  we  may  expect  better  Times. 

A  Plenty  of  Poultry  you  now  may  behold,  with  fine  winter  Butter,  as 
yellow  as  Gold ! 

To  let  your  Income  exceed  your  Expences  is  as  sure  a  Way  to  grow 
rich,  as  to  trust  your  Farm  with  Hirelings  is  to  grow  poor. 

Inactivity  fouls  the  Soul  as  well  as  Body, 

Something  threatens  our  Liberty  ! 


If  we  are  bless'd  with  a  great  Store,  the  Name  of  GOD  let  us  adore. 

Now  Ladies  take  care  of  what  China  you've  got,  lest  winter's  Frost 
render  it  as  though  it  were  not. 

Which  is  most  ridiculous,  a  Hottentot  adorn'd  with  the  Entrails  of 
Beasts,  or  a  modern  Saint  deform'd  with  his  Sunday's  Phiz? 

Wherever  over-sanctity  you  see,  be  sure  take  care  of  hidden  villainy. 

Reader  prepare,  thy  Fate  to  share,  with  those  whose  Station  is  past 
Probation. 


368  ALMANACK   FOR    1765. 

An  ELEGY 
On  the  Death  of  the  late  Dr.  AMES. 

On  troubl'd  Seas  when  Life's  full  Sails  are  swell'd 
By  Blasts  of  Passion,  ne'er  by  Reason  quell'd, 
The  fleeting  Forms  that  in  Life's  Vision  dance, 
The  futile  Pleasures  of  this  Scene  enhance : 
But  Death  approaches !  when  calm  Reason  rules, 
And  real  Scenes  rush  dismal  on  our  Souls. 

Ye  Youth  who  now  with  cold  Indiff'rence  view, 
A  worthy  Parent,  perhaps  scorn  him  too. 
Oh  !  yet,  while  Fate  delays  th'  impending  Woe, 
Be  rouz'd  to  Thought!  anticipate  the  Blow. 
Lest,  unexpected,  in  funereal  Gloom, 
With  me  you  bend  o'er  some  untimely  Tomb, 
Or  your  sad  Frame  with  inward  Grief  you  wear, 
And  almost  think  Heav'n's  sacred  Doom  severe. 

Oh  !  stop  ye  Dreams  ! — ye  dear  Illusions  stay ! — 
Methinks  I  see  the  re-inspired  Clay ! 
Lo !  pleasing  Smiles  his  guileless  Heart  declare, 
Behold  him  healing  with  successful  Care. 

Kind as  the  Turtle  to  her  unfledg'd  Young, 

Indulgent oft  when  I  requested  wrong. 

Still  let  me  listen  while  his  words  impart 
Instructions  mild,  that  captivate  the  Heart, 
And  all  the  Soul,  each  Tumult  charm'd  away, 
Yields,  gently  led,  to  Virtue's  easy  Sway. 
Adorn'd  by  Thee,  bright  Virtue !   Age  is  young, 
And  Musick  warbles  on  the  faultering  Tongue, 
Thy  Ray  creative  chears  the  clouded  Brow, 
Touches  the  faded  Cheek  with  rosy  Glow, 
Illumes  the  joyless  Aspect,  and  supplies 
A  lively  Lustre  to  the  languid  Eyes ; 
Bach  Look,  each  Accent,  while  it  awes,  invites, 
And  Age  with  every  youthful  Charm  delights. 

But  here,  alas  !  the  pleasing  Vision's  flown, 
I  see  him  struggling !  hear  his  dying  Groan  ! 
Behold  his  Visage  with  dire  Spasms  wrung ! 
The  fainter  Sounds  just  'scape  his  parched  Tongue, 
His  flutt'ring  Pulse — now  stops — now  beats — now  done  ! 
His  Soul  now  leaps  ! — returns — and  now  quite  gone ! 

Oh  cruel  Death  !  of  ev'ry  Rule  forlorn, 
Or  thou  might'st  spare  the  Oak  to  take  the  Thorn ; 
Why  miss  thy  erring  Darts  the  worthless  Drones, 
Does  Heav'n  no  more  protect  its  virtuous  Sons  ? — 


ALMANACK    FOR    1765.  369 

Pardon  my  vain  Grief!  Reason  takes  the  Reins, 
His  Soul  is  freed !  while  we  endure  the  Pains, 
'Scap'd  the  dark  Dungeon,  does  the  Slave  complain, 
Nor  bless  the  Hand  that  broke  the  galling  Chain  ? 
Say,  pines  not  Virtue  for  the  ling'ring  Morn, 
Doom'd  in  this  Midnight  Waste  to  stray  forlorn  ? 
Oh  !  happy  Stroke  that  breaks  the  bonds  of  Clay, 
Darts  thro'  the  bursting  Gloom  the  Blaze  of  Day, 
And  wings  the  Soul  with  boundless  Flight  to  soar, 
Where  Dangers  threat,  and  Fears  alarm  no  more. 

Ye  Sluices  of  my  Eyes,  suppress  your  Tears, 
His  ravish'd  Soul  now  roves  among  the  Stars. 


The  "  Rules  for  Husbandry"  are  omitted,  not  being  of  much  interest. 


on  1765. — As  it  was  observed  that  there  was  a  sensible 
change  in  the  essays  and  humor  of  the  almanack  after  the  decease  of  the 
first  Nathaniel  Ames  in  1736, — who,  though  he  did  not  appear  as  the 
author,  undoubtedly  exerted  his  influence  upon  the  publication — so  in  the 
present  instance,  there  will  be  noted  a  still  greater  change  between  the 
present  astronomer  and  his  father ;  due  undoubtedly  to  the  change  in  the 
affairs  of  government,  and  the  customs  and  habits  of  the  people. 

The  title-page  verse  is  admitted  to  have  been  written  by  a  "  mutual 
friend,"  for  a  proper  modesty  on  the  part  of  either  Nathaniel,  would  not 
have  led  them  to  have  indited  the  two  last  lines  thereof,  witty  as  it  really 
is. 

The  address  of  the  Author  to  the  reader  having  premised  with  an 
announcement  of  the  decease  of  his  father,  shows  that  he  has  largely 
inherited  his  father's  tastes  and  his  sentiments  (though  more  positively,) 
and  can  handle  the  pen  of  satire  equally  well.  The  burden  of  his  discourse 
is  the  urgency  of  cultivating  and  the  encouragement  of  home  productions, 
the  discouragement  of  titled  drones,  pretentious  medical  quacks,  legal 
pettifoggers,  and  seditious  Clergymen. 

Thorough-paced  democracy  characterizes  every  line,  as  opposed  to  the 
encroachments  of  the  opponent  Aristocracy  now  apparently  growing  up  in 
the  Colonies. 

The  monthly  verses  are  the  production  of  Nathaniel  Jr.,  and  bear  all  the 
family  traits  of  genius  and  education. 

The  monthly  squibs  give  a  fair  exhibit  of  the  "  Spirit  of  the  Times," 
and  which  can  best  be  appreciated  by  a  careful  perusal  of  the  interlined 
notes,  showing  the  general  direction  of  the  political  storm  now  brewing. 


The  elder  Doctor,  whom  we  have  now  followed  for  forty  years  through 
his  astronomical  career,  his  wit,  and  pleasantries,  his  humor,  sense  and 


370  ALMANACK    FOR    1765. 

nonsense,  has  fulfilled  his  mortal  destiny  and  been  gathered  to  his  fathers. 
With  his  own  plain-spoken  works  before  us,  no  fulsome  eulogy  is 
demanded  at  the  hands  of  the  mere  collator  of  his  labors,  and  we  shall 
simply  transcribe  one  of  the  many  testimonials  which  were  indited  to  his 
memory  by  appreciative  contemporaries. 

Ellsworth,  1765,  a  Connecticut  Almanack- Maker  on  the  Death  of 

Doctor  AMES. 

My  muse  with  sable  colours  spread, 
To  hear  that  Doctor  Ames  is  dead. 
His  great  seraphic  genius  fled. 
Mourn,  mourn,  sons  of  Urania,  mourn, 
For  he  will  never  more  return  : 
To  hover  'round  the  starry  brood, 
For  he's  pass'd  thro'  the  ecliptic  road. 
To  world's  unknown,  he's  took  his  flight, 
The  Grave's  receiv'd  him  from  our  sight : 
Fame  sits  aloft  and  spreads  her  wing, 
While  we  in  mournful  strains  may  sing. 

Any  change  in  tone  from  the  usual  manner  of  the  Almanack,  or  its 
sentiments,  could  not  fail  of  being  noted  by  those  who  had  for  forty  years 
been  conversant  with  the  AMES  publications;  hence  it  is  not  to  be 
wondered  that  we  should  find  among  the  correspondence  of  the  present 
author,  a  letter  of  a  neighboring  critic  which  is  subjoined,  and  which 
explains  itself. 

ROXBURY  8  April  1765 
SIR, 

Tho'  a  stranger  to  you,  yet  I  take  the  freedom  to  give  my  simple  senti 
ments  of  your  address  to  the  Reader  publish'd  in  your  Almanack.  I 
mean  what  you  say  of  "  a  third  species  of  these  Clogs  "  &c.  which  as  It 
seams  strange  to  my  short  sightedness,  you  did  not  upon  a  review,  sup 
press.  As  I  conclude  you  have  adopted  the  sentiment,  shall  not  charge 
you  with  borrowing  it  from  the  famous  M.  Voltaire.  Excuse  me  Sir,  if  I 
tell  you,  that  you  have  given  sufficient  evidence,  that  reveal'd  religion  is 
with  you,  a  Chimera.  Nor  will  your  calling  them,  you  explode,  "  Lay 
pretenders,"  avail  you,  as  you  had  before  given  a  droll  catalogue  of  the 
various  sects  which  unhappily  divide  the  Christian  world.  Supposing 
them  all  equaly  right,  or  (if  you  please)  equaly  wrong;  Indeed  the  heathen 
Idolitors  seam  to  obtain  your  charity. 

If  in  fact  such  are  your  sentiments,  you  may  Laugh  at  an  attempt  to 
set  you  right.  If  otherwise  'tis  doubtless  a  pity  you  gave  the  publick 
reason  to  think  you  an  Enemy  to  the  religion  of  your  country,  for,  this  is 
not  my  oppinion  alone,  but  that  of  many  men  of  better  sense. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1766.  371 

The  universal  Esteam  which  the  country  had  for  your  deceas'd  father 
wou'd  have  vastly  indear'd  you  to  the  publick,  had  you  trod  in  his  steps 
— but  your  early  wide  departure  from  his  known  principles,  is  an  unhappy 
flourish  at  your  first  "commencing  Author." 

If  you  receive  this  in  the  friendly  manner,  in  which  it  is  wrote,  you 
will  not  resent  the  attempt. 

Am  Sir  yf  &c  W.  K  : 


THE    ALMANACK     FOR     1766 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 


BOSTON: 


Printed  and  sold  by  W.  M'AiypiNE;   and  J.  FILMING,  in  Marlborough 

street. 

Price,  2  s.  8  d.  per  Dozen.     Six  Coppers  single. 


We,  tho'  from  Heav'n  remote,  to  Heav'n  will  move 
With  strength  of  Mind  and  tread  th'  Abyss  above ; 
And  penetrate,  with  an  interior  light, 
Those  upper  Depths,  which  Nature  hid  from  sight, 
Pleas'd  we  will  be  to  walk  along  the  Sphere 
Of  shining  Stars,  and  travel  with  the  Year ; 
To  leave  this  heavy  Earth  and  scale  the  height 
Of  Atlas,  Who  supports  the  heav'nly  Weight ; 
To  look  from  upper  Light,  and  thence  survey 
Mistaken  Mortals  wand'ring  from  the  way. 


GENEROUS  READER. 

It  was  not  without  great  diffidence  of  my  own  ability  to  fill 
the  place  of  my  deceased  father,  who  was  40  years  conversant 
with  the  public  in  this  way,  and  whom  even  envy  owns  to  have 
gain'd  their  generous  and  impartial  approbation  ;  a  grateful  sense 
of  which,  inspiring  me  with  the  most  refreshing  hopes  of  their 


372  ALMANACK  FOR  1766. 

future  encouragement  and  protection,  join'd  with  a  reflection  on 
the  sublimity  of  the  employment  for  leisure  hours,  that  I  was 
sollicited  to  offer  these  first  fruits  of  my  labours,  under  my  own 
patronage,  to  your  candid  view.  And  as  long  as  I  can  gain  the 
smiles  of  public  favour,  which  is  a  great  incitement  to  a  noble 
exertion,  I  purpose  to  make  my  appearance  before  you  annually, 
notwithstanding  what  some  obscure  persons  would  insinuate  to 
the  contrary ;  who,  at  the  expence  of  truth  and  reputation,  per- 
sue  their  sordid  interests  with  such  a  monopolizing  disposition, 
as  astonishes  all  impartial  judges  :  for  they  have  not  only  made 
use  of  my  name  to  impose  upon  the  public,  by  prefixing  it  to 
their  counterfeit  Almanacks,  but  have  even  advertised  that  I 
was  not  about  to  publish  an  Almanack  for  this  year,  which  the 
public  knows  to  be  false.1  I  would  advise  such  as  would  buy 
my  Almanack  to  be  cautious  lest  they  be  imposed  upon.  Thus 
much  I  think  necessary  to  inform  the  public  with  regard  to  this 
intended  imposition.  Besides  what  is  usual  in  this  Almanack 
you  have  the  rising,  setting,  or  southing  of  the  seven  stars, 
several  times  in  each  month.  I  shall  always  endeavour  to  pub 
lish  what  I  think  will  be  most  useful  to  the  bulk  of  my  readers, 
let  individuals  make  what  application  they  please  ;  and  next 
consider  their  innocent  diversion  :  yet  I  hope  I  shall  never  be  so 
bigotted  to  my  own  opinion  as  not  to  lay  open  to  the  conviction 
of  any  error,  when  it  is  offered  in  a  candid  manner,  by  argu 
ments  drawn  from  cool  reason,  void  of  passion  and  prejudice. 
Here  I  should  conclude,  did  I  not  share  in  the  general  distress 
of  my  countrymen,  and  think  it  out  of  character,  not  to  condole 
with  them  in  their  present  distressed  circumstances,  who  not 
only  groan,  but  almost  sink  beneath  a  load  of  debt ;  our  mer 
chants  continually  breaking ;  no  money  to  be  had,  even  for  the 
most  valuable  articles  ;  and  all  threatened  with  ruin,  without  the 
lenity  and  assistance  of  our  superiours ;  yet  so  far  from  this, 


*In  1765,  in  evident  anticipation  of  the  discontinuance  of  the  publica 
tion  after  the  decease  of  the  old  Doctor,  "  a  late  Student  at  Harvard  Col 
lege,"'1  issued  a  "  Nathaniel  Ames  almanack"  for  1766,  which  is  remarkable 
for  the  following  note  in  connection  with  the  price  of  the  book,  and  the 
"  Stomp  Act. n  "Price  before  the  Stamp  Act  takes  Place,  Hal f-a-Dollar 
per  Dozen,  and  six  Coppers  Single.  After  the  Act  takes  place,  more  than 
double  the  Price." 


ALMANACK    FOR    1766.  373 

that  we  are  shocked  with  a  new  demand,  which,  it  is  thought  by 
many,  all  the  current  specie  among  us  is  not  able  to  satisfy ;  and 
after  that  is  gone,  then  go  houses  and  lands,  then  liberties !  and 
all  the  land  that  we  can  then  get,  will  be  only  in  vassalage  to 
some  haughty  Lord,  which  Heaven  avert !  But  this  is  only  a  con 
jecture  of  what  might  be  should  we  prove  very  tame  and  easy  at 
putting  on  the  yoke.  Now,  on  the  other  hand,  let  us  consider, 
the  Government  must  be  kept  up  ;  and  that  they  who  sit  at  helm, 
know  the  exigencies  of  state  much  better  than  we  who  are  at  a 
distance ;  and  that  we  have  the  happiness  to  be  under  as  good  a 
King  as  ever  reign'd,  and  a  very  wise  government ;  that  they 
know  we  possess  a  true  British  spirit ;  and  that  when  they  come 
to  know  our  true  circumstances,  they  will  certainly  redress  our 
evils,  for  as  we  are  a  member  of  the  whole  body  of  the  state,  our 
interests  are  mutual,  and  we  cannot  think  of  independency. 
But,  above  all  things,  let  us  rely  on  the  goodness  of  that  power 
which  protected  our  forefathers,  who  sought  shelter  in  this  howl 
ing  wilderness  among  the  savage  beasts  from  more  savage  men  ; 
that  they  might  quietly  worship  HIM,  who  has  hitherto,  and  as 
long  as  we  do  our  duty,  will  continue  to  defend  us  from  foreign 
and  domestic  enemies,  and  STAMP  with  eternal  infamy  and  dis 
grace,  those  who  would  oppress  or  tyrannize  over  us.  And  now, 
reader,  relying  on  further  acquaintance,  wishing  all  happiness 
to  British  America  and  confusion  to  its  foes,  I  subscribe  my  self 
your  humble  Servant,  NATH.  AMES. 


All  Persons  who  incline  to  encourage  the  Paper  Manufacture 
are  requested  to  save  their  old  Cotton  and  Linen  Rags  &c,  for 
which  they  may  have  a  good  Price  at  the  Paper  Mill  at  Milton. 


JANUARY.          Columbian  Genius  hear  our  prayer : 
O !  let  us  all  with  lustre  rise 
Beneath  thy  tutelary  care  : 
Retain  our  dear  bought  liberties ; 
L/et  not  the  voice  of  Native  freedom  sound 
Alone  in  realms  which  Albion's  shores  surround. 


374 


ALMANACK    FOR    1766. 


FEBRUARY. 


MARCH. 


APRIL. 


MAY. 


JUNE. 


JULY. 


"As  each  society  may  justly  claim 
A  task  adapted  to  each  sex  and  frame  ; 
Much  it  imports  in  active  life  to  know, 
What  to  ourselves,  to  others,  what  we  owe ; 
What  offices  from  what  relations  rise ; 
And  what  our  state,  and  what  our  frame  implies 
By  these  in  one  consistent  plan  we  rise ; 
Sense  makes  us  active,  action  make  us  wise." 


"  Lovely  beauty,  breathing  spring, 
Waving  soft  thy  balmy  wing  ; 
Fairest  glory  of  the  year ! 
On  our  longing  plains  appear. 
Sweet  inspirer  of  my  song  ! 
On  a  sun-beam  glide  along !  " 


"  See  the  lovely  Nymph  appears, 
And  a  crown  of  roses  wears. 
Now  the  Husbandmen  prepare 
To  improve  the  coming  year  ; 
Flinging  free  the  gen'rous  grain, 
Hoping  pleasure,  bearing  pain." 


"  We'll  write  him  down  a  slave,  who,  humbly,  proud? 
With  presents,  begs  preferments  from  the  croud ; 
That  early  suppliant  who  salutes  the  tribes, 
And  sets  the  mob  to  scramble  for  his  bribes. 
I/et  awful  virtue,  patriot  warmth  inspire, 
And  catch  from  breast  to  breast  the  noble  fire." 


"  Be  thou  content  with  that  degree  of  fate, 
That's  first  thy  lot,  and  first  thy  destin'd  state ; 
Be  wise,  and  wholly  on  thy  God  rely. 
This  world's  vain  pleasures,  and  its  pride  defy ; 
Whilst  cank'ring  cares  does  mortal  life  surround, 
In  Heav'n  alone  true  happiness  is  found. 


"  What  is  in  death,  that  men  should  fear  to  die  ? 
Or,  What  is  life,  but  care  and  misery? 
The  world's  chief  glories  are  unworth  our  stay ; 
Their  distant  beauties,  when  approach'd,  decay  : 
L/ike  lovers  dreams,  which  paint  the  yielding  fair, 
We  grasp  a  shade,  and  fill  our  arms  with  air. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1766. 


375 


AUGUST. 


Observe  a  man  thro'  ev'ry  scene  of  life, 
Blest  in  estate,  in  children,  and  a  wife, 
And  something  you  will  ev'ry  hour  find, 
To  spoil  his  pleasures  and  distract  his  mind. 
The  greedy  miser  makes  his  sole  employ, 
To  heap  up  riches  others  may  enjoy." 


SEPTEMBER.  "  'Tis  wealth  to  have  tranquility  of  mind", 
In  that  consists  the  bliss  of  human  kind : 

Content thou  great,  thou  universal  good, 

So  seldom  known,  so  little  understood ; 
In  thee  the  peasant,  seeking  only  health, 
Learns  to  contemn  the  sordid  misers  wealth. 


OCTOBER. 


"  Of  all  the  vows,  the  first  and  chief  request 
Of  each,  is  to  be  richer  than  the  rest ; 
And  yet,  no  doubts  the  poor  man's  draught  controul, 
He  dreads  no  poison  in  his  homely  bowl ! 
They  fear  the  deadly  drug,  whose  gems  divine, 
Enchase  their  cups,  and  sparkle  in  their  wine." 


NOVEMBER.  "  The  fearful  passenger  who  travels  late, 

Charg'd  with  the  carriage  of  his  large  estate, 
Shakes  at  the  moon-shine  shadow  of  a  rush, 
And  sees  a  robber  rise  from  ev'ry  bush. 
The  beggar  sings,  e'en  when  he  sees  the  place 
Beset  with  thieves,  and  never  mends  his  pace." 


DECEMBER 


"  Tho'  plung'd  in  ills,  and  exercis'd  with  care, 
Yet  never  let  the  noble  mind  despair : 
When  prest  by  dangers,  and  beset  with  foes, 
The  Gods  their  timely  succor  interpose  ; 
And  when  our  virtue  sinks  o'erwhelm'd  with  grief, 
By  unforeseen  expedients  send  relief." 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 


The  driving  Snow  with  wind  &  sleet  resemble  much  th'  affairs  of  State' 

Wealth  is  a  wave,  honor  a  bait  of  death,  catching  at  which  we  are 
catch'd. 

Love  is  a  credulous  thing. 

Trust  not  him  who  hath  deceived  you,  nor  him  that  pretendeth  great 
things,  for  both  are  liars. 


376  ALMANACK  FOR  1766. 

He  that  speaks  truth,  yet  aims  to  deceive,  is  a  liar. 
A  fop  is  but  a  piece  of  a  man. 

How  is  the  world  deceived  by  show ! 

Alas !  how  different  to  pretend  and  know. 
Liberty  carried  to  excess  becomes  the  worst  kind  of  tyranny. 
Reconciliation  of  grand  parties. 


The  approach  of  Spring  plainly  perceiv'd  by  the  old  and  infirm. 

As  now  the  snow  and  ice  are  soften'd,  so  are  the  hearts  of  some  ladies. 

Plainness  of  manners  is  the  surest  sign  of  honesty. 

Poverty  is  the  fruit  of  idleness. 


The  sole  end  of  government  is  the  happiness  of  the  people,  &c. 
We  should  not  measure  men  by  Sundays,  without  regarding  what  they 
do  all  the  week  after. 

Want  prompts  the  wit,  and  first  gave  birth  to  arts. 
One  good  turn  deserves  another. 


To  know  ourselves  rightly  will  be  a  good  means  to  cure  us  of  the  itch 
of  being  flattered. 

The  pleasant  fields  young  girls  entice 

And  make  them  hear  their  sparks  advice. 
Many  rail  at  the  times,  but  few  strive  to  make  them  better. 


A  man  of  sense  never  tells  a  long  story. 

Some  great  affair  on  the  carpet,  but  as  yet  remains  a  profound  secret, 
except  to  some  politicians. 

Great  preparations  to  very  small  profit. 

How  highly  shall  we  esteem  the  man  that  wears  the  manufactures  of 
his  own  country,  in  opposition  to  the  ill  taste  of  the  age  ? 

No  man  is  to  blame  for  his  opinion ;  for  we  believe  what  we  must,  not 
what  we  will. 

An  excellent  Orator  and  sage  Politician  received  into  favor,  and  caressed 
by  his  Prince. 

By  a  prospect  of  some  interest,  differences  amongst  rivals  come  near 
being  settled,  but  alas !  Venus  overcomes  Plutus  and  spoils  all. 

They  are  thought  to  have  read  much  who  speak  of  it  often,  but  'tis 
only  a  sign  they  don't  digest  what  they  read. 

Whilst  some  are  fighting  about  riches, 
Others  strive  who  shall  wear  the  breeches. 


Range  where  you  please  thro'  water,  earth  and  air, 
God  is  in  everything  and  everywhere. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1766.  377 

A  very  good  season  for  traveling,  both  for  the  Epicure  and  Valetudi 
narian. 

Acquaintance  are  common  as  chaff,  but  friends  are  rarely  to  be  found. 
Pride,  ill  nature  and  folly,  are  the  three  great  sources  of  ill  manners. 


Gravity  passes  with  many  for  wisdom,  but  'tis  often  dullness,  sometimes 
Affectation,  at  best  disagreeable,  but  talkativeness  is  always  the  effect  of 
folly. 

If  each  blade  would  mind  his  trade, 

Each  lass  and  lad  in  homespun  clad, 

Then  we  might  cramp  the  growth  of  STAMP. 

Keen  north  wester  Old  maids  doth  pester. 

When  we  hear  the  disagreeable  chains  of  slavery  rattle,  it  is  time  to 
think  of  avoiding  them. 

Liberty  is  more  precious  than  all  gifts. 

An  idle  man  is  the  d — 1's  playfellow. 

Good  sense  is  the  foundation  of  good  manners. 


There  will  be  four  Eclipses  this  Year. 

The  first  of  the  SUN,  February  9th,  at  7  h.  13  m.  23  s.  Morning, 
invisible  in  North  America ;  but  in  South  America,  and  at  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope,  the  Sun  will  be  two  thirds  eclipsed. 

Second  of  the  MOON,  February  24th,  at  3  h.  6  m.  Afternoon, 
invisible. 

Third  of  the  SUN,  August  5th,  visible. 

h.     m. 
Beginning,  1 1     40  Forenoon. 

Middle  i     14)    . 

-.-A    ,  \  Afternoon. 

End  2     47  j 

Duration  3       7 

Digits  eclipsed  8     48 

####*### 

This  latter  eclipse,  after  traversing  the  voids  of  space  from 
the  creation,  at  last  began  to  touch  upon  the  unknown  parts 
near  the  south  pole,  about  88  years  after  the  conquest.  In  the 


378  ALMANACK  FOR  1766. 

year  1546,  the  ijih  of  June,  it  began  to  touch  New-England: 
And  in  1622,  it  first  touched  the  southern  parts  of  Old-England, 
the  3oth  of  April,  about  2  in  the  Afternoon  ;  It's  central  appear 
ance  rising  in  the  American  south  sea,  traversing  Peru  and  the 
Amazon  country,  thro'  the  Atlantic  ocean  into  Africa,  and  setting 
in  Ethiopia  near  the  Red  Sea.  In  1676,  on  the  first  of  June,  it 
was  almost  central  to  us  at  Sun  rise ;  and  at  Sun  setting  in  the 
gulf  of  Cochinchina  :  In  1694  visible  in  the  afternoon:  In  1748, 
July  25th,  it  was  nearly  central  at  Newfoundland,  just  after  Sun 
rise.  The  next  period  is  the  present  eclipse.  Again,  in  1820 
Sept.  7th,  this  eclipse  will  return  very  large  at  London.  It 
will  be  visible  again  in  1838,  at  London,  Sept.  i8th;  It  will 
also  be  visible  here,  a  small  quantity  eclipsed :  but  it  wears  off 
every  period  to  the  northward ;  and  about  the  year  2090,  it 
wholly  leaves  the  earth,  and  there  will  be  no  more  return  of  it, 
till  after  a  period  of  10,000  years. 

The  first  eclipse  of  this  year  came  on  at  the  North  pole 
several  thousand  years  ago ;  and,  some  thousand  years  hence, 
will  leave  the  earth  at  the  South  pole  ;  and  thus  it  is  ascertained, 
that  an  eclipse  finishes  one  grand  revolution  in  11683  years;  so 
that  those  eclipses  which  began  at  the  creation,  have  but  little 
more  than  half  finished  their  periods.  By  an  extensive  knowl 
edge  in  this  dodlrine  of  eclipses,  Astronomers  are  enabled  to  fix 
the  date  of  any  thing  recorded  in  ancient  history  very  exadlly, 
where  an  eclipse  is  recorded  about  the  same  time :  thus  the 
vulgar  year  of  Christ's  birth  is  found  to  be  erroneous ;  and  what 
we  now  write  or  call  the  year  of  our  Lord  1766,  is  not  more  than 
1762,  as  is  demonstrated  by  the  observation  of  an  eclipse  recorded 
by  Josephus,  which  cannot  change,  tho'  the  calculations  from 
our  present  tables  do  not  exactly  agree  with  very  ancient  obser 
vations,  which,  according  to  the  opinion  of  all  modern  Astrono 
mers,  is  owing  to  the  Moon's  finishing  her  periods  now  in  less 
time  than  formerly,  and  that  she  is  continually  approaching 
nearer  and  nearer  the  Earth,  as  do  the  rest  of  the  planets  to  the 
Sun,  their  projectile  force  not  being  quite  sufficient  to  balance 
the  power  of  attraction  ;  whence  in  time  the  present  system  of 
the  world  must  come  to  an  end  of  itself,  without  any  interposi 
tion  of  its  Grand  Constructor,  just  as  a  clock  left  to  itself  will 
inevitably  run  down. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1766.  379 

Fourth  eclipse  of  the  MOON,  August  2oth,  visible. 

h.  m. 

Beginning  i       o  } 

Middle  -      2  16  /-Morning. 

End  3  32  ) 

Duration  2  32 

Digits  eclipsed  6  13 

The  ancients  believed,  that  all  visible  eclipses  were  porten- 
tuous  of  some  dire  event ;  and  several  treatises  were  written,  to 
shew  against  what  regions  the  malevolent  effects  of  any  particu 
lar  eclipse  was  aimed:  and  these  writers  affirm,  that  the  effects 
of  an  eclipse  of  the  Sun,  lasted  as  many  years  as  the  eclipse 
lasted  hours ;  and  that  of  the  Moon,  as  many  months.  But  as 
futile  as  these  notions  may  appear  now-a-days,  they  were  once 
of  no  small,  advantage  to  Christopher  Columbus,  who,  in  the 
year  1493,  was  driven  to  the  island  of  Jamaica,  where  he  was  in 
the  greatest  distress  for  want  of  provisions,  and  was  moreover 
refused  any  assistance  from  the  inhabitants,  on  which  he  threat 
ened  them  with  a  plague,  and  that  in  token  of  it  there  should  be 
an  eclipse ;  which  falling  on  the  day  he  had  foretold,  so  terrified 
the  barbarians,  that  they  strove  who  should  be  the  first  in 
bringing  him  all  sorts  of  provisions,  throwing  them  at  his  feet, 
and  imploring  his  forgiveness. 


All  persons  who  are  desirous  to  have  any  alteration  made  in 
this  Almanack  concerning  the  Stages  on  the  Post-roads,  or  any 
thing  else,  are  desired  to  write  to  the  Author,  not  to  the  former 
Printer  as  he  advertised  in  last  year's  Almanack. 


Oil  1766. — The  present  Author  follows  the  conventional 
custom,  and  the  title  page  verse  is  of  the  devotional  order,  both  in  the 
religious  and  astronomical  view. 

The  address  to  the  Generous  Reader  calls  the  public  attention  to  the 
liability  of  their  being  imposed  upon  by  the  sale  of  spurious  copies  of 
the  time  honored  weather  book,  and  indirectly  alludes  to  the  "  late  student 
at  Harvard  College"  as  one  of  the  pirates  who  endeavor  to  profit  by  the 
reputation  achieved  by  another.  The  condition  of  affairs  political  and 


380  ALMANACK   FOR    1766. 

social ;  the  recent  attempt  of  the  Crown  to  enforce  odious  burdens  of 
taxation; — particularly  the  obnoxious  Stamp  Act  —  together  with  the 
myriad  of  almost  daily  occurrences  leading  up  to  the  great  event  of  the 
century,  should  afford  an  abundance  of  material  to  make  a  very  interest 
ing  pamphlet,  even  if  it  appeared  but  annually. 

The  tone  of  our  Author  is  moderate— and  while  the  gravity  of  the 
situation  is  wholly  apparent  to  him,  (the  condition  of  affairs  in  all  classes 
of  society  being  almost,  if  not  quite,  desperate,)  yet  with  all  the  loyalty  of 
a  good  subject  (which,  under  the  circumstances  is  remarkable)  he  counsels 
mildness,  with  every  reliance  upon  the  wisdom  of  the  home  government, 
and  the  honest  intentions  of  "  as  good  a  King  as  ever  reigned."  He  further 
urges  that  "  we  cannot  think  of  independency"  although  "  we  should  not 
prove  very  tame  and  easy  at  putting  on  the  yoke" 

The  allusion  to  the  Deity,  and  the  accentuation  of  the  word  STAMP, 
in  the  latter  paragraphs,  are  quite  Ames  characteristics. 

The  spirit  of  Philopatria  is  observed  in  the  opening  stanzas  of  the 
monthly  poem ;  then  follows  the  typical  "  spring  poetry  "  of  the  epoch ; 
now  we  gather  some  "  awful  virtue  and  patriot  warmth "  as  summer 
approaches ;  passing  on  to  a  mid-summer  idyl  on  Life  and  Death — then 
contentment  is  described,  closing  the  year  with  a  versified  disquisition  on 
the  blessings  of  poverty. 

The  essay  is  a  description  of  the  great  Solar  Eclipse,  happening  this 
year  on  August  5.  The  article  in  question  is  very  readable,  and  embraces  a 
history  of  the  occurrence,  with  its  various  periods  of  appearance  at  differ 
ent  points  of  observance  on  the  Earth,  and  its  prospective  recurrence  for 
the  future. 

Some  not  generally  known  facts  in  connection  with  eclipses  are  noted : 
one,  that  the  present  year  1766,  should  not  be  more  than  1762  ;  and  further, 
the  end  of  all  things  is  predicted  to  occur  without  the  "  interposition  of 
the  Grand  Constructor  just  as  a  clock  left  to  itself  will  inevitably  run 
down." 

The  "squibs"  in  the  "pot  pourri "  column  are  much  like  father's: 
Politics,  Love,  Wealth,  Women,  Wisdom,  Saws,  Satire,  Sadness,  Religion, 
Pretence,  Flattery,  Hard  Times,  Harder  Money,  Home  Productions, 
Opinion,  Gravity,  Stamps,  Slavery,  Idleness,  and  Good  Sense — all,  as 
Prof.  Tyler  says,  "  mingled  in  delightful  juxtaposition  " — and  thus  ends 
the  fateful  year. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1767.  381 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1767. 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 

BOSTON: 

Printed  and  sold  by  WIW,IAM  M'AivPiNE  in  Marlborough  street. 
Price,  2S.  8d per  Dozen,  Six  Coppers  single. 


'  Who  thinks  that  Fortune  cannot  change  her  mind, 
Prepares  a  dreadful  jest  for  all  mankind ; 
And  who  stands  safest,  tell  me  ?    Is  it  he 
That  spreads  and  swells  in  pufF'd  prosperity  ? 
Or  blest  with  little,  whose  preventing  care, 
In  peace  provides  fit  arms  against  a  war  ? 
Content  with  little  I  can  piddle  here, 
On  turneps,  beef  and  mutton,  round  the  year: 
I'll  marry  Honesty,  tho'  Fortune  lour, 
Rather  than  follow  such  a  blind  dull .' 


READER, 

I  most  heartily  congratulate  thee  on  the  happy  prospect  of 
the  publick  affairs  of  this  Country,  so  different  from  what  it  was 
last  Fall,  as  nearly  to  exceed  the  most  sanguine  expectation,  and 
which,  however  unwilling,  some  few  may  be  to  own  it,  was  pro 
duced  by  the  exertion  of  that  noble  spirit  of  Freedom,  which 
every  thinking  honest  Man  that  has  never  been  galled  with  the 
chain  of  slavery  is  possessed  of — a  spirit  which  GOD  grant  no 
tyrant  may  ever  be  able  to  extinguish  amongst  us :  to  the  first 
exciters  of  which  we  are  so  superlatively  indebted  on  so  many 
accounts,  as  would  far  exceed  the  limits  of  my  page  to  express. 
I  only  hope  that  you  will  always  show  your  sense  of  the  obliga 
tion  by  rewarding  them  and  their  posterity,  so  long  as  they  shall 
hold  their  integrity,  with  all  the  most  important  posts  of  honour 
and  profit  that  you  are  capable  of  bestowing  ;  and  that  whenever 
a  Virginian  shall  visit  this  part  of  the  Land  of  Freedom,  you 


382  ALMANACK    FOR    1767. 

will  be  no  niggard  of  Hospitality.  Having  these  matters  so  far 
settled  according  to  our  wishes,  let  us  turn  our  thoughts  on  the 
arts  of  peace. —  — Oh  !  ye  husbandmen,  too  happy  would  ye  be, 
did  ye  know  your  own  advantages ;  did  ye  turn  your  minds  to 
the  cultivation  of  ingenious  arts,  that  soften  the  manners  and 
prevent  our  being  brutish  ;  did  ye  neglect  the  vain  amusements 
and  idle  tattle  of  the  town,  and  rather  strive  to  know  the  life  and 
manners  of  young  prince  Heraclius  of  Georgia,  than  whether 
neighbour  Such-a-one  married  a  month  too  late  to  be  honest. 
What  fine  opportunities  have  ye  to  improve  yourselves  by  study 
above  tradesmen  and  mechanicks,  whilst  your  fruits  and  herbage 
are  growing  ?  At  the  intervals  of  cultivating  your  fields,  ye  might 
be  enriching  your  minds  with  useful  knowledge — by  perusing 
the  Roman  history  ye  might  learn  how  gradually  a  rough 
and  ignorant  people,  by  cultivating  the  study  and  practice  of  use 
ful  arts  and  manufactures,  did  emerge  from  obscurity  to  a  state 
of  grandeur  and  affluence  inconceivable ;  so  great  that  their  relicks 
are  at  this  day  the  wonder  of  the  world — how  at  last  they  became 
indolent  and  luxurious,  and  therefore  vitious  and  ignorant,  which 
made  them  a  prey  to  tyranny ;  and  tyranny  always  ends  in  the 
extinction  of  a  nation,  as  is  evident  to  those  that  take  notice  of 
what  passes  in  the  great  world,  that  is,  read  history.  Ignorance 
among  the  common  people  is  the  very  basis  and  foundation  of 
tyranny  and  oppression.  With  what  absolute  and  despotick  sway 
did  that  grand  tyrant  and  impostor  the  Pope  of  Rome  rule  the 
consciences  and  purses  of  mighty  sovereigns  and  most  of  the 
people  of  Europe,  Britons  among  the  rest,  so  long  as  lie  kept 
them  in  ignorance,  making  them  pray  in  Latin  like  a  parcel  of 
parrots,  nor  suffering  the  common  people  to  keep  Bibles  in  a 

language  they  understood. But   happy  for  the  world  he  is 

dwindling  away,  many  nations  have  thrown  off  his  saddle,  and 
are  not  quite  so  much  priest-ridden.  Let  us  then,  my  country 
men,  study  not  only  religion  but  politicks  and  the  nature  of 
civil  government :  become  politicians  every  one  of  us ;  take 
upon  us  to  examine  every  thing,  and  think  for  ourselves ; 
striving  to  prevent  the  execution  of  that  detestable  maxim  of 
European  policy  amongst  us,  viz :  That  the  common  people, 
who  are  three  quarters  of  the  world,  must  be  kept  in  ignorance, 
that  they  may  be  slaves  to  the  other  quarter  who  live  in 


ALMANACK    FOR    1767.  383 

magnificence;  and  for  this  end  I  should  recommend  to  you,  first, 
the  study  of  Geography,  that  is  the  situation,  extent,  government, 
commodities,  &c.  of  all  countries  upon  earth.  Salmon's  or  Gor 
don's  Geography  are  as  good  as  any  that  are  published ;  and  in 
Salmon's  Gazeteer  you  have  in  few  words  an  history  of  any 
country  in  alphabetical  order,  that  you  may  turn  to  in  a  moment. 
An  English  dictionary  will  be  a  vast  help  to  you.  The  knowl 
edge  of  geography  will  fit  you  for  reading  history :  it  is  proper 
to  begin  with  the  history  of  your  own  nation ;  Rapirts,  Echard's 

or  Plume 's  histories  of  England  are  most  approved  of. Yet 

let  not  these  amusements  intrude  upon  the  more  important 
occupations  of  life :  our  bodies  must  be  fed  and  clothed,  but 
that  is  not  all ;  we  must  do  more ;  we  must  raise  something  to 
sell  for  exportation,  if  we  would  increase  in  wealth.  We  are 
not  tenants  but  lords  of  the  soil,  and  may  live  as  genteel  tho' 
not  in  such  splendour,  as  lords,  by  increasing  trade  and  com 
merce,  which  are  as  necessary  to  a  state  as  wings  to  a  bird ; 
encouraging  all  kinds  of  tradesmen  and  artificers  among  us, 
diligence  and  industry  in  every  one,  keeping  all  sorts  of  lawful 
business  constantly  going  on,  every  wheel  in  the  grand  system 
continually  moving,  despising  foreign  luxury  and  effeminacy, 
banishing  from  among  us  immorality  and  idleness.  He  that  will 
not  work,  neither  shall  he  eat. 

Besides  this  general  ceconomy,  there  are  many  schemes  that 
would  turn  out  to  the  immediate  advantage  of  individuals,  many 
of  which  nothing  but  necessity,  the  mother  of.  invention  must 
discover  in  time  to  come,  when  the  country  is  too  thick  inhab 
ited  for  all  to  get  a  living  by  the  present  methods  of  farming. 
Of  how  little  value  and  trifling  of  late  did  we  esteem  the  Ashes 
that  we  make  in  our  houses,  till  some  publick  spirited  gentle 
man  set  on  foot  the  scheme  of  making  Pot-Ash,  which  is  now 
become  a  fine  staple  commodity  ;  for  which  Great-Britain  used 
to  send  vast  sums  of  money  to  Russia,  Norway,  and  other  woody 
countries  that  now  centers  here. 

But  after  all,  our  farms  ought  to  be  the  chief  objecl  of  our 
attention ;  for  they  are  capable  of  so  great  and  profitable 
improvements,  that  I  shall  not  here  attempt  to  describe  them, 
but  heartily  recommend  to  the  perusal  of  every  farmer  in  the 
country  Mr.  Eliot's  essays  on  field  husbandry,  as  it  is  or  may  be 


384  ALMANACK  FOR  1767. 

ordered  in  New-England,  and  dare  promise  them  it  will  not  be  a 

mispence  of  time. Before  I  quit  this  subject,  I  shall  briefly 

hint  to  you  another  way  in  which  I  think  you  may  be  of  great 
service  to  the  publick,  by  introducing  a  manufacture  which  would 
be  as  clear  a  saving  to  the  country  as  that  of  Pot-ash,  and  inter 
fere  very  little  with  other  business,  which  is  the  raising  raw 
silk.  I  will  communicate  to  you  the  method  as  delivered  to  me 
by  sundry  persons  and  by  my  next  neighbour,  who  raises  consid 
erable  quantities  of  silk  every  year.  In  the  first  place,  you  must 
provide  a  sufficient  number  of  mulberry-trees,  which  grow  as 
fast  as  peach-trees,  for  altho'  the  silk  worms  will  live  on  other 
leaves,  yet  they  wrill  produce  silk  from  no  other  food  but  mul 
berry-leaves  ;  having  procured  a  parcel  of  silk-worms'  eggs  you 
may  hatch  them  when  you  please  by  exposing  them  to  the  air 
on  shelves,  or  rather  to  the  warm  sun-shine,  you  must  mind 
and  not  hatch  them  out  before  the  leaves  have  come  forth  in 
great  plenty,  for  they  eat  more  than  one  would  imagine,  and  so 
greedily  that  you  may  hear  them  chew :  they  must  be  carefully 
tended  every  day  with  fresh  leaves,  and  their  shelves  cleaned 
from  filth,  till  they  have  done  eating,  which  will  be  in  about  a 
fortnight  from  the  time  they  begin,  and  then  they  go  to  spining, 
which  lasts  about  a  week  longer ;  at  the  end  of  which  they  must 
be  killed  in  a  warm  oven  or  warm  water,  or  they  will  eat  thro' 
their  silk  and  spoil  it ;  but  those  that  you  intend  for  breeders 
must  be  suffered  to  eat  thro'  their  balls  and  turn  into  butterflies, 
to  lay  eggs  for  the  next  year,  which  must  be  kept  in  drawers 
close  from  the  air.  As  to  the  manufacture  of  the  silk,  I  may 
possibly  say  something  about  it  before  your  mulberry-trees  are 
grown;  and,  in  the  mean  time,  am,  with  the  profoundest 
respect,  &c.  NAT>  AMES_ 


JANUARY.          The  spleeny  matron  on  her  pensive  bed, 
Pain  at  her  side,  and  megrim  at  her  head ; 
Two  handmaids  wait  her  nod,  alike  in  place, 
But  diff'ring  far,  in  figure  and  in  face. 
Here  stands  Ill-nature,  like  an  ancient  maid, 
Her  wrinkled  form  in  black  and  white  array'd. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1767. 


385 


FEBRUARY. 


MARCH. 


APRII,. 


MAY. 


JUNE. 


JUI.Y. 


With  store  of  prayers  for  mornings,  nights  and  noons 
Her  hand  is  fill'd — her  bosom  with  lampoons. 
There  Affectation,  with  a  sickly  mein, 
Shows  in  her  cheek  the  roses  of  eighteen, 
Pradlis'd  to  lisp,  and  hang  the  head  aside, 
Faints  into  airs,  and  languishes  with  pride. 
On  the  rich  quilt  sinks  with  becoming  woe, 
Wrapt  in  a  gown  for  sickness and  for  show. 


Nature  made  ev'ry  fop  to  plague  his  brother, 
Just  as  one  beauty  mortifies  another : 
But  here's  the  Captain  that  will  plague  them  both, 
Whose  air  cries,  Arm !  whose  very  look's  an  oath, 
The  Captain's  honest,  sirs,  and  that's  enough, 
Tho'  his  soul's  bullet,  and  his  body's  buff. 


But  thou,  ignoble  wretch,  who  first  essay'd 

To  charm,  by  sordid  arts,  the  venal  maid, 

Taught  her  young  breast,  on  hopes  of  gain  to  rove, 

Neglecting  innocence  and  faithful  love, 

Eternal  curses  blast  thy  hated  name, 

Thou  bane  of  life,  of  humanity  the  shame. 


The  fatal  effects  of  Luxury  are  these  ; 
We  drink  our  poison,  and  we  eat  disease. 
Not  so,  O  Temperance !  when  rul'd  by  thee 
The  brute's  obedient,  and  the  man  is  free, 
To  learn  how  great  the  virtue  and  the  art, 
To  live  on  little  with  a  cheerful  heart. 


Hear  what  says  Rusticus,  not  vers'd  in  schools, 
But  strong  in  sense,  and  wise  without  the  rules ; 
Go  work,  hunt,  exercise,  but  shun  the  glass, 
Then  scorn  a  homely  dinner  if  you  please." 
Soft  are  the  slumbers,  balmy  is  the  rest, 
The  veins  not  boiling  from  the  midnight  feast. 


'Tis  to  thy  rules,  O  Temperance !  we  owe 

All  pleasures,  which  from  health  and  strength  can  flow, 

Vigour  of  body purity  of  mind, 

Unclouded  reason sentiments  refin'd, 

Unmix'd,  untainted  joys without  remorse, 

Th'  intemp'rate  Sensualist's  never-failing  curse. 


386 


ALMANACK    FOR    1767. 


AUGUST. 


SEPTEMBER. 


OCTOBER. 


NOVEMBER. 


DECEMBER. 


On  morning  wings  how  active  springs  the  mind, 

That  leaves  the  load  of  yesterday  behind  ! 

How  easy  ev'ry  labour  it  pursues, 

How  coming  to  the  Poet  every  muse, 

How  fresh  and  clear  the  streams  of  wisdom  flow, 

How  soon  they  cease  when  we  intemp'rate  grow ! 


How  pale,  each  worshipful  and  rever'nd  guest 
Rise  from  a  clergy,  or  a  city  feast ! 
What  life  in  all  that  ample  body,  say, 
What  heav'nly  particle  inspires  the  clay, 
The  soul  subsides,  and  sensually  inclines, 
To  seem  but  mortal,  e'en  in  sound  divines. 


D ,  with  more  than  harpy  throat  endu'd, 

Cries  "  Send  me  gods  a  whole  hog  barbecu'd, 
"  With  south  winds  blasted  'till  a  stench  exhale, 
"  Rank  as  the  ripeness  of  a  rabit's  tail." 
By  what  criterion  do  ye  eat,  d'ye  think, 
If  this  is  priz'd  for  sweetness,  that  for  stink  ? 


'Tis  yet  in  vain,  I  own,  to  keep  a  pother, 

About  one  vice,  and  fall  into  the  other : 

Between  excess  and  famine  lies  a  mean ; 

Plain,  but  not  sordid — tho'  not  splendid,  clean, 

In  cheerful  mood  when  with  you  friends  shall  dine, 

Good  humour's  better  than  the  richest  wine. 


When  luxury  has  lick'd  up  all  thy  pelf, 

Curs'd  by  thy  neighbours,  thy  trustees,  thyself, 

Sculk  to  your  garret,  at  the  hour  of  seven, 

There  starve  and  pray,  for  that's  the  way  to  heav'n 

Then  buy  a  rope,  that  future  times  may  tell, 

Thou  hast  at  least  bestow'd  one  peny  well. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

Strife  among  sensual  lovers  for  want  of  preliminary  articles. 
The  wrinkled  scold  embitters  cold, 
And  adds  a  curse  to  an  empty  purse. 

Want  of  decency  is  want  of  sense. 

He  that  stays  in  the  valley  will  never  get  over  the  hill. 

Want  of  care  does  more  hurt  than  want  of  skill. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1767.  387 

A  wise  man's  soul  couches  at  the  root  of  his  tongue,  but  a  fool's  is  ever 
dancing  on  the  tip. 

Vice  rules  where  gold  reigns. 
Far  from  court,  far  from  care. 
Good  deeds  live,  all  things  else  die. 

Almanack  says  spring,  but  Jack  Frost  says  winter. 

Mercury  has  been  very  busy  among  the  planets  and  will  produce  some 
thing  very  astonishing  among  old  women  and  politicians. 
March  18.     STAMP  ACT  repealed. 

Let's  drink  to  PiTT,  the  English  pearl ; 

May  he  shine  yet,  tho'  made  an  Earl. 
Ill  will  speaks  good  of  no  one. 


Cool  words  scald  not  the  tongue. 

To  prove  a  friend,  experiences  Reaches, 
One  deed  is  worth  a  thousand  speeches. 

Every  bean  has  its  black. 

Truth  may  be  blam'd  but  will  ne'er  be  sham'd. 

A  lye  stands  upon  one  leg,  truth  upon  two. 

Pride  will  have  a  fall. 


Where  virtue  fails,  a  bribe  prevails. 
Let  not  your  tongue  cut  your  throat. 

Thunder  and  lightning  purge  the  air,  as  a  fever  does  the  human  body. 
The  world  loves  to  be  imposed  on  by  extravagancies,  and  always  will  as 
long  as  three-quarters  of  it  are  fools. 


None  is  truly  great  that  is  not  truly  good. 

Haughty  words  breed  strife. 

He  that  now  neglects  his  hoe,  must  in  winter  suck  his  paw. 

Poverty  is  to  be  laughed  at  when  it  is  the  consequence  of  vice,  prodi 
gality,  or  neglect  of  one's  calling:  for  it  fills  our  streets  with  robbers, 
money-makers,  quacks,  and  pettifoggers. 


A  bean  with  freedom  is  better  than  a  sugar  plumb  in  prison. 
The  gods  of  war  and  eloquence,  combine  to  fill  the  gaps  of  sense. 
Virtue  is  the  beauty  of  the  soul. 

A  fine  growing  season for  horns. 

Wilful  waste  makes  woful  want. 

Let  your  tongue  avoid  rash  speaking :  they  that  speak  without  care 
suffer  without  pity. 

To  defend  the  Christian  religion  is  one  thing,  and  to  knock  a  man  on 
the  head  for  being  of  a  different  religion  is  another. 


388  ALMANACK    FOR    1767. 

Content  is  a  jewel  of  the  highest  esteem,  not  to  be  bought  with  money, 
but  gained  by  virtue. 

Silence  is  the  safest  course  for  a  man  to  take  that  mistrusts  his  own 
judgment. 

He  is  not  good  who  does  not  wish  to  mend. 


A  plodding  old  knave  gains  publick  esteem  but  soon  is  unmasked. 

Better  suffer  a  great  evil  than  do  a  small  one. 

Trade  and  Commerce  make  any  place  happy  and  rich. 

If  you  can't  bite,  never  show  your  teeth. 


Rather  go  to  bed  supperless  than  rise  in  debt. 

Possession  is  riches ;  trade  and  commerce  enable  us  to  possess  any 
thing. 

That  place  is  richest  and  most  happy  where  there  are  fewest  useless 
men. 

Give  to  them  that  want. 

Immodest  words  admit  of  no  defence. 


Powder  Plot  most  forgot. 

Sharpers  in  their  black  uniforms  lead  the  people  by  the  nose  with  the 
bridle  of  ignorance. 

In  eastern  climes  its  rugged  times — the  Indian  yet  dissembles. 

A  Wit's  a  feather,  a  Chief's  a  rod. 

An  honest  man's  the  noblest  work  of  God. 


To  be  genteel  is  not  to  be  reserved  or  haughty,  but  to  make  your  com 
pany  as  easy  and  agreeable  as  possible — 'tis  the  overflowing  of  universal 
love  :  an  affected  speech  or  behaviour  may  be  politeness. 

Conversation  is  the  chief  blessing  in  this  life — with  friends. 

With  Christmas  cheer  let's  banish  care. 

Our  bad  lives  mend  quite  to  the  end. 


A  brief  Account  of  the  supreme  executive  Courts  that  are  held  in 

England. 

The  King's  Bench  is  next  to  the  Parliament,  the  highest  court 
in  England  at  common  law ;  in  which  are  handled  the  pleas  of 
the  crown,  all  things  that  concern  the  loss  of  life  or  member  of 
any  subject,  treason,  breach  of  peace,  oppression,  &c.  In  this 
court  are  four  judges  :  the  first  is  called  Lord  Chief  Justice  of  the 
King^s-bench  ;  his  power  is  very  great. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1767.  389 

The  High  Court  of  Chancery  is  designed  to  mitigate  the 
rigour  of  the  other  courts,  and  is  called  the  Court  of  Equity. 
This  court  has  but  one  judge,  viz.  Lord  Keeper  of  the  Great  Seal ; 
his  sentence  is  definitive  without  a  jury  of  12  men. 

The  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  wherein  the  usual  and  common 
pleas  between  subjects  are  debated. 

The  Court  of  Exchequer.  In  this  court  are  tried  all  causes 
relating  to  the  King's  treasury  or  revenue,  &c. 

&'^\k^^^\r^\^r^&^ 

W.  M'ALPINE  hereby  informs  the  Publick  that  he  purchased 
the  genuine  copy  of  this  Almanack  from  Dr.  AMES,  and  hopes 
they  will  not  be  imposed  upon  by  buying  spurious,  pirated,  and 
incorrect  editions  of  the  same  :  At  whose  shop  may  be  had  Tate 
and  Brady's  Psalms,  Watts'  Psalms  and  Hymns,  Bibles,  Testa 
ments,  Prayer-books,  Psalters,  Spelling-books,  Primers,  Divinity 
and  History-books,  Paper,  Pens,  Ink,  Ink-powder,  Wax,  Wafers, 
&c.  &c.  at  the  very  lowest  Prices. 

£@~PRINTING  performed  by  said  M'ALPiNE  in  the  best 
Manner,  and  at  the  most  reasonable  Rate. 

^^^^^-i\^4^^ 

Notes  on  1767. — The  verses  on  the  title  sheet,  upon  close  exam 
ination,  abundantly  exhibit  the  very  desperate  condition  of  either  the 
times,  or  the  Muse.  But  yet  the  annual  address  seems  to  give  a  different 
aspect  to  affairs,  which  betokens  a  general  improvement  in  relations  both 
political  and  social. 

The  author's  manner  of  encouraging  the  people  to  an  active  apprecia 
tion  of  the  advantages  for  improvement  which  are  within  their  reach,  is 
peculiar  and  practical,  and  the  homily  entire  is  replete  with  wisdom  and 
discretion.  He  inveighs  against  the  prevalence  of  ignorance  in  the  lower 
classes,  and  points  out  the  way  to  a  more  intimate  acquaintance  with,  and 
knowledge  of,  religion,  politics,  and  the  nature  of  civil  government,  so 
absolutely  essential  to  prevent  the  establishment  of  the  European  policy 
of  aristocracy  in  the  Colonies. 

He  then  dilates  upon  the  necessity  of  economy,  and  the  encourage 
ment  of  agriculture  and  home  productions ;  (so  long  a  popular  text  with 
the  author's  father,)  particularly  enlarging  upon  the  silk-culture  then 
deemed  to  be  an  advantageous  industry  for  introduction  into  the  Colonies. 

The  poetic  captions  of  each  monthly  page  are  in  the  direction  of  topics 


390  ALMANACK  FOR  1768. 

of  a  social  nature — addressed  generally  to  both  sexes — luxury  decried  and 
temperance  extolled  in  the  very  fullness  of  sturdy  Anglo-Saxon. 

The  miscellany  is  not  very  plentiful  this  year.  A  short  account  of  the 
titles  and  provinces  of  the  English  Courts ;  and  an  advertisement  by  the 
printer,  "  that  he  purchased  the  genuine  copy  of  the  Almanack  from 
DR.  AMES,  and  hopes  they  (the  Publick)  will  not  be  imposed  upon  by  buy 
ing  spurious,  pirated  and  incorrect  editions  of  the  same." 

The  weather  column  is  brim-full  of  wit  and  humor ;  terse  sayings,  and 
timely  allusions  to  men  and  manners.  Pitt  is  honored,  the  repeal  of  the 
Stamp-Act  noticed,  the  results  of  poverty  alluded  to,  the  advantages  of 
freedom  recalled  to  the  public  notice,  the  clergy  treated  to  a  mild  form  of 
castigation,  and  the  "  Powder  plot  most  forgot." 


THE    ALMANACK    FOR    1768. 


By  NATHANIEL  AMES. 

BOSTON: 

Printed  and  Sold  by  the  Printers  and  Booksellers, 
at  2s  8d  per  Dozen,  and  Five  Coppers  single. 


Ador'd  Artificer!   What  Skill  divine  ! 
What  Wonders  in  the  wide  Creation  shine  ! 
Fair  look  the  Stars,  and  fair  the  Morning  Ray, 
When  first  the  Fields  their  painted  Scenes  display. 
Order  and  Majesty  adorn  the  whole. 
Beauty  and  Life,  and  thou  th'  inspiring  Soul : 
Whatever  Grace,  or  Harmony's  express'd 
On  all  thy  Works  the  God  is  there  confess'd : 
But,  oh !  from  all  thy  Works  how  small  a  Part, 
To  human  Minds  is  known  of  what  thou  art  ? 
Fancy  gives  o'er  its  Flight  in  search  of  Thee, 
Our  Tho'ts  are  lost  in  thy  Immensity. 


READER. 

Custom  and  Fashion,  which  the  World  blindly  follows,  right 
or  wrong,  must  be  followed  by  Almanack-makers,  as  well  as 
others;  otherwise,  perhaps,  I  should  have  saved  myself  the 


ALMANACK    FOR    1768.  391 

Trouble  of  writing,  and  you  of  reading  a  formal  Preface,  and 
rilled  this  Page  with  a  Table  of  Interest,  or  something  that  might 
assist  you  in  your  Business.  Bnt  to  prevent  your  going  to  sleep 
over  it,  I  shall  season  it  with  some  humorous  Extracts  from  Dr. 
Smollefs  Travels  concerning  the  Absurdity  of  the  Customs  and 
Fashions  of  different  Nations.  "At  Paris,  says  he,  'tis  the  Fashion 
to  eat  mortified  flesh :  a  Native  of  Legiboli  will  not  taste  his 
Fish  'till  it  is  quite  putrified  :  The  civilized  Inhabitants  of  Kam- 
schatka  get  drunk  with  the  Urine  of  their  Guests  whom  they 
have  already  intoxicated  :  The  Nova-Zemblans  and  Laplanders 
feast  and  make  merry  on  Lamp  Oil :  The  Greenlanders  eat  in 
the  same  Dish  with  their  Dogs  :  The  CafFres  at  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope  p — ss  upon  those  whom  they  delight  to  honor,  and  feast 
upon  Sheep's  Guts  as  the  greatest  Dainty  that  can  be  presented : 
A  true-bred  Frenchman  dips  his  Fingers  imbrowned  with  Snuff 
into  his  Plate  filled  with  Ragout,  and  between  every  three  Mouth- 
fuls  takes  a  fresh  Pinch  with  the  most  graceful  Gesticulations, 
then  he  displays  his  Handkerchief,  which  may  be  termed  the 
Flag  of  Abomination,  and  in  the  Use  of  both  scatters  his  Favors 
on  all  that  have  the  Happiness  to  sit  near  him  ;  it  must  be  owned 
however  that  a  Frenchman  will  not  drink  out  of  a  Tankard,  in 
which  perhaps  a  dozen  Mouths  have  slabbered,  as  is  the  Custom 
among  the  English,  but  each  has  his  own  Goblet,  which  stands 
before  him  on  the  Table,  if  there  is  so  little  Cleanliness  among 
these  People,  much  less  shall  we  find  Delicacy,  which  is  the  Clean 
liness  of  the  Mind ;  can  Custom  exempt  from  the  Imputation  of 
gross  Indecency ;  a  French  Lady  who  shifts  herself  in  Presence 

of  a  male  Visitant,  and  suffers  herself  to  be  handed  to by  her 

Admirer,  or  him  who  stands  at  the  Door  all  the  while  she's  within, 
and  entertains  her  with  the  smart  small  Talk  of  the  Town  which 
he  has  at  his  Finger's  ends."  Now  Reader,  let  us  look  into  our 
own  Country,  and  see  if  we  ourselves  have  no  such  absurd,  un 
clean,  indelicate  customs.  I  think  I  could  mention  several ; 
but  seeing  that  they  do  little  other  Damage  than  offend  the 
Senses  of  those  who  come  within  the  Sphere  of  their  Action,  I 
shall  wave  them,  and  only  just  touch  upon  the  bewitching  Power 
of  the  Fashion  of  the  times.  How  absurd  is  it  for  Parents 
who  by  their  own  Care  and  Industry  have  heaped  up  an  Estate 
to  educate  their  Children,  as  if  they  thought  they  never  could 


392  ALMANACK    FOR    1768. 

spend  it,  by  teaching  or  suffering  them  to  place  their  chief  Am 
bition  in  Dress,  and  Scenes  of  Dissipation,  whereby  they  contract 
an  hearty  Aversion  for  Business,  and  the  thriving  Sound  of  the 
Spinning  Wheel  and  Loom,  and  spread  the  Infection  of  despising 
honest  Industry  and  modest  Merit,  in  home-made  Dress,  as  if  in 
this  consisted  Gentility,  which  has  little  to  do  with  externals  ; 
for  a  Gentleman  is  the  same  in  all  Circumstances,  in  Silk  & 
Sackcloth ;  and  we  often  see  an  ill-bred  Villain  dressed  very 
fashionably.  How  much  more  honor'd  and  esteemed  by  every 
true  Patriot  and  Friend  to  his  Country,  is  the  Man,  who,  cloath'd 
in  the  Manufacture  of  his  own  House,  conies  to  the  City  on  his 
lofty  Steed,  loaded  with  the  Fat  of  the  Land,  in  Sacks  as  white 
as  Snow,  true  Emblem  of  Neatness  and  Delicacy  !  he  looks  inde 
pendent,  and  need  not  fear  the  Frowns  of  the  prosperous  Villain. 
I  say,  how  esteemed  and  much  more  useful  to  Society  is  such  a 
one,  than  the  empty  idle  Fop,  who  laughs  at  his  laudible  Curi 
osity. — But  methinks  I  hear  one  say,  there  is  still  a  great  Ab 
surdity  unnotic'd,  which  is,  that  an  Almanack-maker  should  set 
up  for  a  Reformer ;  I  submit  to  the  Censure,  and  return  to  my 
Province,  by  saying,  there  are  but  four  Days  in  the  Year  on 
which  a  true  Clock  or  Watch  will  be  right  with  the  Sun,  but  are 
sometimes  a  Quarter  of  an  Hour  too  fast  or  slow  if  they  go  even. 
From  the  24th  December  to  i5th  of  April,  the  Clock  will  be  too 
fast ;  from  i5th  April,  to  i6th  June,  Clock  will  be  too  slow ;  from 
1 6th  June  to  3ist  August,  Clock  will  be  too  fast ;  and  from  thence 
to  the  24th  December,  Clock  will  be  too  slow  :  And  you  may  tell 
whether  your  Clock  or  Watch  goes  exact,  by  observing  through 
a  small  Hole  in  a  Window  Shutter,  what  Time  any  Star  dis 
appears  behind  a  Steeple  or  Chimney ;  and  if,  on  the  next  Night, 
the  same  Star  disappears  3  Minutes  56  Seconds  sooner  by  the 
Clock  or  Watch,  it  is  exact. 

N.  AMES. 


JANUARY.         Whether  amid  the  gloom  of  night  I  stray, 
Or  my  glad  eyes  enjoy  revolving  day, 
Still  Nature's  various  face  informs  my  sense 
Of  an  all  wise,  all  powerful  Providence  : 
Sole  Lord  of  nature's  universal  frame, 
Thro'  endless  years  unchangeably  the  same. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1768. 


393 


FEBRUARY. 


MARCH. 


APRIL,. 


MAY. 


JUNE. 


JUI.Y. 


When  the  gay  Sun  first  breaks  the  shades  of  night, 
And  strikes  the  distant  eastern  hills  with  light, 
Colour  returns,  the  plains  their  liv'ry  wear, 
And  a  bright  verdure  cloaths  the  smiling  year  ; 
The  blooming  flow'rs  with  op'ning  beauties  glow, 
And  grazing  flocks  their  milky  fleeces  show. 
The  barren  cliffs  with  chalky  fronts  arise, 
And  a  pure  azure  arches  o'er  the  skies. 


But  when  the  gloomy  reign  of  night  returns, 
Stript  of  her  fading  pride  all  nature  mourns : 
The  trees  no  more  their  wonted  verdure  boast, 
But  weep  in  dewy  tears  their  beauties  lost ; 
No  distant  landskips  draw  our  curious  eyes, 
Wrapt  in  night's  robe  the  whole  creation  lies. 


Yet  still,  ev'n  now,  while  darkness  cloaths  the  land, 
We  view  the  traces  of  th'  Almighty  hand  : 
Millions  of  stars  in  heav'ns  wide  vault  appear, 
And  with  new  glories  hang  the  boundless  sphere : 
The  silver  moon  her  western  couch  forsakes, 
And  o'er  the  skies  her  nightly  circle  makes. 


Her  solid  Globe  beats  back  the  sunny  rays, 
And  to  the  world  her  borrow'd  light  repays ; 
Whether  those  stars  that  twinkling  Lustre  send, 
Are  suns,  and  rolling  worlds  those  suns  attend ; 
Man  may  conjecture,  and  new  Schemes  declare, 
Yet  all  his  systems  but  conjectures  are. 


But  this  we  know,  that  heav'ns  eternal  King, 
Who  bid  this  universe  from  nothing  spring, 
Can  at  his  Word  bid  num'rous  worlds  appear, 
And  rising  worlds  th'  all-pow'rful  Word  shall  hear. 
His  single  fiat  guide  th'  amazing  whole 
And  teach  the  new-born  planets  where  to  roll. 


When  to  the  Western  Main  the  Sun  descends, 
To  other  Lands  a  rising  Day  he  lends, 
The  spreading  Dawn  another  Shepherd  spies, 
The  wakeful  Flocks  from  their  warm  Folds  arise, 
Refresh'd,  the  Peasant  seeks  his  early  toil, 
And  bids  the  Plow  correct  the  Fallow  soil. 


394 
AUGUST. 


SEPTEMBER. 


OCTOBER. 


NOVEMBER. 


DECEMBER. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1768. 

While  we  in  Sleep's  embraces  waste  the  night, 
The  Climes  oppos'd,  enjoy  Meridian  light ; 
And  when  those  Lands  the  busie  Sun  forsakes, 
With  us  again  the  rosy  Morning  wakes  ; 
In  Lazy  Sleep  the  night  rolls  swift  away, 
And  neither  Clime  laments  his  absent  ray. 


So  when  the  soul  is  from  the  body  flown, 
No  more  shall  nights  alternate  reign  be  known  : 
The  sun  no  more  shall  rolling  light  bestow, 
But  from  th'  Almighty,  streams  of  glory  flow  ; 
Then  may  some  nobler  thought  my  soul  employ, 
Than  empty  transient  sublunary  joy. 


For  what  is  life  ?  with  ills  encompass'd  round 
Amidst  our  hopes,  fate  strikes  the  sudden  wound, 
To-day  the  statesman  of  new  honors  dreams, 
To-morrow  death  destroys  his  airy  schemes, 
Is  mouldy  treasure  in  thy  chest  confind  ? 
Think  all  that  treasure  thou  must  leave  behind. 


Thy  heir  with  smiles  shall  view  thy  blazon'd  hearse 
And  all  thy  hoards  with  lavish  hand  disperse. 
Should  certain  fate  th'  impending  blow  delay, 
Thy  mirth  will  sicken  and  thy  bloom  decay, 
Then  feeble  age  will  all  thy  nerves  disarm, 
No  more  thy  blood  its  narrow  channels  warm. 


Who  then  would  wish  to  stretch  this  scanty  span, 

To  suffer  life  beyond  the  date  of  man  ? 

The  virtuous  soul  pursues  a  nobler  aim, 

And  life  regards  but  as  a  fleeting  dream ; 

She  longs  to  wake  and  wishes  to  get  free, 

To  launch  from  earth  into  eternity. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

You  won't  forget  'tis  Winter  these  stormy  days.     Good  slaying. 
A  full  cellar,  neat  house,  warm  wife,  at  this  time  are  blessings  of  life. 
Plots  &  schemes  now  laid  will  be  very  like  to  take  place. 
There  will  hardly  be  a  thaw  this  month,  unless  now ! 


ALMANACK  FOR  1768.  395 

Southern  blasts  almost  break  the  heart  of  winter. 

Domestic  polity  now  comes  on. 

Warm  and  sloppy  weather  some  time  about  the  end  of  this  month. 


Pleasant  travelling  at  a  small  distance  from  the  ground,  especially  if 
the  fashion,  is  wings,  tho'  they  that  have  try'd,  had  their  neck  broke  by 
strings. 


Sincerity  does  not  so  much  good  in  the  world,  as  its  appearance  does 
mischief. 

Sincerity  as  it  is  the  plainest,  so  it  is  the  best  rule  for  conduct  of  life. 
The  deceitful  are  full  of  fear  and  anxiety. 


Bluntness,  as  it  is  the  seeming  effect  of  sincerity,  So  it  is  the  best  cover 
to  Artifice. 

Swiming  is  now  a  fine  excercise  for  the  weak,  lazy  and  corpulent. 


It  is  not  in  the  power  of  a  weak  Man  to  be  sincere. 
Some  learn  how  to  live.     Some  how  to  get  a  living. 
Now  Fans  and  Umbrellas  afford  the  ladies  an  airy  satisfaction. 
Nothing  is  so  great  an  inlet  to  Misery  and  Vice  as  not  to  know  how  to 
employ  our  leasure  Hours. 


They  who  know  no  Pleasure  above  sensual,  can  hardly  be  idle  and 
innocent. 

If  the  Sun  shine  on  the  24th  of  August,  that  is  a  good  sign. 


Take  care  of  early  Frost,  cold  fruit,  and  hot  Rum. 


He  that  lets  his  tongue  run  before  his  wit  cuts  other  mens  meat  and 
his  own  Fingers. 

Exercise  will  warm  you  better  than  Rum  or  fire. 


A  moderate  Man  has  a  great  advantage  over  one  that  is  passionate. 
A  man  should  enlarge  the  sphere  of  his  innocent  pleasures,  so  much, 
that  he  may  safely  leave  Business,  and  not  fall  into  Vice. 


In  the  seventh  day  of  the  Moon  Abel  was  slain. 
Excellent  weather  to  lodge  together. 


396  ALMANACK  FOR  1768. 

Save  your  MONEY,  and  you  save  your  COUNTRY  ! 


At  a  legal  and  full  Meeting  of  the  Freeholders  of  the  Town 
of  Boston,  on  the  28th  of  October,  1767,  the  following  Votes  were 
passed  unanimously. 

WHEREAS  the  excessive  use  of  foreign  Superfluities  is  the 
chief  cause  of  the  present  distressed  State  of  this  town,  as  it  is 
thereby  drained  of  its  Money :  which  Misfortune  is  likely  to  be 
increased  by  means  of  the  late  additional  Burthens  and  Impo 
sitions  on  the  Trade  of  the  Province,  which  threaten  the 
Country  with  Poverty  and  Ruin  : 

Therefore,  Voted,  That  this  Town  will  take  all  prudent  and 
legal  Measures  to  encourage  the  Produce  and  Manufactures  of 
this  Province,  and  to  lessen  the  Use  of  Superfluities,  and  partic 
ularly  the  following  enumerated  Articles  imported  from  Abroad, 
viz:  Loaf  Sugar,  Cordage,  Anchors,  Coaches,  Chaises  and  Car 
riages  of  all  Sorts,  Horse  Furniture,  Men  and  Womens  Hatts, 
Mens  and  Womens  Apparel  ready  made,  Household  Furniture, 
Gloves,  Mens  and  Womens  Shoes,  Sole  Leather,  Sheathing  and 
Deck  Nails,  Gold  and  Silver  and  Thread  Lace  of  all  Sorts,  Gold 
and  Silver  Buttons,  Wrought  Plate  of  all  Sorts,  Diamond,  Stone 
and  Paste  Ware,  Snuff,  Mustard,  Clocks  and  Watches,  Silver 
smiths  and  Jewellers  Ware,  Broad  Cloths  that  cost  above  los. 
per  Yard,  Muffs,  Furrs  and  Tippets,  and  all  Sorts  of  Millenary 
Ware,  Starch,  Womens  and  Childrens  Stays,  Fire  Engines, 
China  Ware,  Silk  and  Cotton  Velvets,  Gauze,  Pewterers  hollow 
Ware,  Linseed  Oyl,  Glue,  Lawns,  Cambricks,  Silks  of  all  kinds 
for  Garments,  Malt  Liquors  and  Cheese. And  that  a  Sub 
scription  for  this  End  be  and  hereby  is  recommended  to  the 
several  Inhabitants  and  Householders  of  the  Town. 

And  whereas  it  is  the  Opinion  of  this  Town,  that  divers  new 
Manufactures  may  be  set  up  in  America,  to  its  great  Advantage, 
and  some  others  carried  to  a  greater  Extent,  particularly  those 
of  Glass  and  Paper  : 

Therefore,  Voted,  That  this  Town  will  by  all  prudent  Ways 
and  Means  encourage  the  Use  and  Consumption  of  Glass  and 
Paper,  made  in  any  of  the  British  American  Colonies ;  and  more 
especially  in  this  Province.  The  Form  of  the  Subscription  voted 
unanimously  b}^  the  Town,  is  as  follows : 


ALMANACK  FOR  1768.  397 

Whereas  this  Province  labours  under  a  heavy  Debt,  incurred 
in  the  Course  of  the  late  War ;  and  the  Inhabitants  by  this 
Means  must  be  for  Time  subject  to  very  burthensome  Taxes  :— 
And  as  our  Trade  has  for  some  Years  been  on  the  decline,  and 
is  now  particularly  under  great  Embarrassments,  and  burthened 
with  heavy  Impositions,  our  Medium  very  scarce,  and  the 
Balance  of  Trade  greatly  against  this  Country  : 

WE  therefore  the  Subscribers,  being  sensible  that  it  is  abso 
lutely  necessary,  in  Order  to  extricate  us  out  of  these  embar 
rassed  and  distressed  Circumstances,  to  promote  Industry, 
Oeconomy  and  Manufactures,  among  ourselves,  and  by  this 
Means  prevent  the  unnecessary  Importation  of  European  Com 
modities,  the  excessive  Use  of  which  threatens  the  Country  with 
Poverty  and  Ruin. — Do  promise  and  engage,  to  and  with  each 
other,  that  we  will  encourage  the  Use  and  Consumption  of  all 
Articles  manufactured  in  any  of  the  British  American  Colonies, 
and  more  especially  in  this  Province ;  and  that  we  will  not,  from 
and  after  the  3ist  of  Dece tuber  next  ensuing,  purchase  any  of 
the  following  Articles  imported  from  Abroad,  viz :  Loaf  Sugar, 
and  all  the  other  Articles  enumerated  above. — 

And  we  further  agree  strictly  to  adhere  to  the  late  Regulation 
respecting  Funerals,1  and  will  not  use  any  Gloves  but  what  are 
Manufactured  here,  nor  procure  any  new  Garments  upon  such 
an  Occasion  but  what  shall  be  absolutely  necessary. 

Friends  and  Country-Men !  Our  Fathers  came  into  this 
Wilderness,  encouraged  by  the  Word  of  a  King  that  they  should 
enjoy  their  Civil  &  Religious  Liberties !  They  lived  upon  boil'd 
Corn  and  Clams,  and  laboured  hard  to  clear  and  cultivate  the 
Country  they  purchased  of  the  Natives,  and  defended  the  same 
at  the  Expence  of  their  own  Blood  and  Treasure  :  We  have 
often  aided  the  Crown  with  Men  and  Money ;  and  by  the  Con 
quest  of  Cape-Briton,  gave  Peace  to  Europe :  Our  Taxes,  till 
very  lately,  have  been  granted  by  our  own  Representatives  for 
the  Support  of  Government ;  and  we  have  given  Old  England 

1  The  Practice  of  the  Town  relative  to  Funerals,  by  which  a  Saving  has 
been  made  of  ^"100,000  is  to  give  Gloves  only  to  Bearers  and  Ministers  :  to 
make  Use  of  no  other  Mourning  for  the  nearest  Relations,  than  a  Weed 
in  the  Hat  for  Men,  and  a  black  Bonnet,  Gloves,  Ribbons  and  Handker 
chief  for  Women. 


398  ALMANACK   FOR    1768. 

Millions  of  Money  in  the  way  of  Trade :  Our  growing  Extrava 
gancies  have  run  us  amazingly  into  Debt ;  and  the  Moneys  that 
should  go  in  Payment,  are  now  to  be  taken  from  us,  without  our 
Consent,  to  Support,  independent  of  the  People,  and  in  greater 
Affluence,  the  Officers  of  the  Crown ;  as  also  to  maintain  &  keep 
up  a  large  body  of  Regular  Troops  in  America.  Duties, 
unknown  to  our  Fathers,  to  be  paid  here  upon  Sugar,  Molasses, 
Wine,  Rum,  Tea,  Coffee,  Cocoa,  Paper  of  all  kind,  Painters 
Colours,  Window  and  other  Glass,  &c.,  will  carry  off  all  our 
Silver  and  Gold,  without  other  Taxes,  which  are  talk'd  of  upon 
Salt  &  Land,  to  the  Ruin  of  Trade,  and  in  the  end  of  the  whole 
Province,  unless  prevented  by  the  Virtue  of  the  People.  Boston, 
has  set  a  noble  Example  for  the  Encouragement  of  Frugality 
and  our  own  Manufactures,  by  the  Agreement  unanimously 
come  into ;  and  may  it  be  followed  by  all  the  other  Towns : 
Nay,  let  them  go  further,  by  agreeing  not  to  sip  that  poisonous 
Herb,  called  Bohea  Tea,  as  also  not  to  purchase  any  sort  of 
Woolen  Goods  made  abroad,  for  12  or  18  Months  to  come,  but 
to  wear  their  old  patch'd  Cloaths  till  our  own  Manufacture  can 
be  bought,  as  many  in  New- York,  Connecticut  and  Philadelphia, 
are  now  doing. — If  this  Saving  is  not  made,  Interest  must  rise, 
Mortgages  cannot  be  cleared,  Lands  will  fall,  or  be  possess'd  by 
Foreigners,  ;  Families  impoverished,  and  our  Goals  filled  with 
unhappy  Objects — If  these  wise  Measures  should  be  come  into, 
a  whole  Province  will  be  saved  from  Slavery,  and  this  dreadful 
Ruin,  and  we  shall  soon  become  a  FREE,  RICH  and  HAPPY 
PEOPLE  ! — That  the  Things  which  belong  to  our  political  Peace, 
may  not  be  hid  from  the  Eyes  of  Americans,  as  it  seems  to  be 

from  the  Eyes  of  Britons,  is  the  hearty  Wish  of 

A  NEW-ENGLAND  MAN. 


All  Persons  who  incline  to  encourage,  the  Paper  Manufac 
ture,  are  requested  to  save  their  old  Cotton  and  Linen  Rags,  &c. 
for  which  they  may  have  a  good  price  at  the  Paper  Mill  at 
Milton. 


Oil  1768.—  If  variety  is,  (or  was,)  the  Spice  of  Life,  no  one 
can  pick  up  an  Ames  Almanack  without  being  convinced  that  both  father 
and  son  were  thoroughly  seasoned  with  this  most  agreeable  zest.  Their 


ALMANACK    FOR    1768.  399 

works,  humble  though  they  be,  give  assurance  of  acute  observation,  a 
thorough  familiarity  with  the  general  literature  of  the  day,  and  a  knowl 
edge  of  what  was  for  the  general  good  of  the  greatest  number. 

The  almanack  for  the  present  year  is  no  exception  to  the  usual  pro 
duction.  The  character  of  a  devout  Christian  gentleman  is  embodied  in 
the  stanzas  of  the  title  page,  as  well  as  the  ardent  admiration  of  the 
astronomer  for  the  handiwork  of  the  Grand  Architect  of  the  Universe. 

The  desire  of  the  author  to  lighten  the  way  of  the  weary  traveler  on 
this  terrestrial  ball,  is  made  apparent  in  the  address  to  the  Reader,  in 
which  he  introduces  Doctor  Smollett  and  his  humorous  ideas,  to  set  forth 
the  follies  of  Fashion,  and  warn  the  Colonists  against  the  errors  of  extrav 
agance.  From  this  he  returns  to  the  consideration  of  the  life  of  the  in 
dependent  Farmer,  and  closes  his  short  lecture  with  some  practical  in 
structions  for  the  regulation  of  Clocks  and  Watches. 

A  "  Hymn  to  Nature  "  embellishes  each  page  in  the  almanack,  and  in 
sentiment  differs  not  from  the  Ames  theory,  as  has  been  expressed  in 
similar  manner,  for  these  forty  and  more  years. 

If  any  person  doubts  the  Spirit  of  the  Colonists,  which  brought  about 
the  great  change  which  led  to  the  independence  of  the  Colonies,  they 
have  only  to  read  the  "Preamble  and  Resolutions,  voted  at  the  Freeholders 
Meeting  at  Boston,  Oct.  28, 1767,"  and  the  very  earnest  and  sensible  address 
of  "  A  New  England  Man  "  and  consider  whether  the  then  example,  may 
not  be  a  precept  to  be  adapted  for  our  own  times. 

The  domestic  nature  of  the  author  can  be  judged  from  the  casual  re 
marks  in  their  proper  place  in  the  "  remarks  column." 


4OO  ALMANACK  FOR  1769. 


THE    ALMANACK     FOR     1769. 


By  Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON  :  Printed   and  Sold  by  WILLIAM  M'ALPINE,  in  Marlbor- 
ough  street. 

How  blest  the  Man  with  Powers  superior  born, 
Whose  Mind  the  Muses  with  each  Grace  adorn, 
For  distant  Flights  to  wing  th'  excursive  Soul 
Or  glance  with  Lightning's  speed  from  Pole  to  Pole 
Whether  thro'  Nature's  devious  Path  he  strays, 
Pursues  the  Planet's  Course,  the  Comet's  Blaze. — 
Or  less  advent'rous  quits  the  aerial  height 
To  fix  on  mortal  Woes,  a  mortal  Sight ; — 
Divest  the  Heart  of  each  dark  Veil  it  wears, 
Expose  its  Hopes,  its  Conflicts,  and  its  Cares  ; 
By  bold  Examples  fire  the  youthful  blood, 
Appal  the  Guilty,  or  confirm  the  Good ! 
Submit  each  dang'rous  Wish  to  Reason's  Laws, 
And  arm  our  Passions  in  our  Virtue's  Cause. 


Note. — The  article  "  On  the  Manufacture  of  SII,K  "  is  omitted  as  not 
being  of  sufficient  interest  to  republish.  However  "  a  Gentleman  whom 
Posterity  will  bless,  has  deposited  100  Dollars  in  the  Hands  of  the  Select 
Men  of  Boston,"  to  be  divided  in  premiums  among  those  of  Massachusett's 
Bay,  "  who  in  the  Year  1771  shall  have  raised  the  greatest  Number  of 
Mulberry  Trees." 

JANUARY.          When  our  Forefathers  firm  maintain'd  the  cause 
Of  true  Religion,  Liberty  and  Laws, 
Disdaining  down  the  golden  Stream  to  glide, 
But  bravely  stem'd  Corruptions  rapid  Tide, 
Shall  we,  by  Indolence,  supinely  doom 
To  Sweat  and  Toil  the  Nations  yet  to  come  ? 


FEBRUARY.      What !  shall  a  Tyrant  trample  on  the  Laws, 

And  stop  the  Source  whence  all  his  Pow'rs  he  draws ! 
His  Country's  Rights  to  foreign  Foes  betray, 
Lavish  her  Wealth,  yet  stipulate  for  Pay ! 


ALMANACK  FOR  1769. 


401 


MARCH. 


APRII,. 


MAY. 


JUNE. 


JUI<Y. 


AUGUST. 


To  shameful  Falsehoods  venal  Slaves  subborn, 
And  dare  to  laugh  the  virtuous  Man  to  scorn  ! 
Deride  Religion,  Justice,  Honour,  Fame, 
And  hardly  know  of  Honesty  the  Name  ! 


Lives  there  a  Wretch  whose  base  degen'rate  Soul, 
Can  crouch  beneath  a  Tyrant's  stern  Controul  ? 
Cringe  to  his  Nod,  ignobly  kiss  the  Hand, 
In  galling  Chains  that  binds  his  native  Land? 
Purchas'd  by  Gold  or  aw'd  by  slavish  Fear, 
Abandon  all  his  Ancestors  held  dear  ! 


Tamely  behold  that  Fruit  of  glorious  Toil, 
The  People's  Charter  made  the  Ruffians  Spoil  ? 
In  Luxury's  Lap,  lie  screen 'd  from  Cares  and  Pains, 
And  only  toil  to  forge  the  subjects  Chains  ? 
Hear,  unconcern'd,  his  injur'd  Country  groan, 
Nor  stretch  an  Arm  to  hurl  them  from  the  Town  ? 


In  Peace,  shall  War,  her  horrid  Front  up  rear, 
And  martial  Vices  draw  the  virtuous  Tear, 
Shall  stern  Oppression  stalk  along  the  Land, 
Nor  royal  Pity  our  just  Cry  command? 
Can  we  to  Reason  make  a  just  Pretence, 
No  pow'rful  Aid  invok'd  for  our  Defence  ? 


Hear  then,  just  Heav'n,  our  most  fervent  Prayer, 

New-England's  Weal  be  thy  peculiar  Care ! 

Defend  her  Laws,  her  Worship  chaste  and  pure  ! 

And  guard  her  Rights  while  Heav'n  and  Earth  endure 

O !  let  not  ever,  fell  tyrannic  Sway, 

His  blood-stain'd  Standard  on  her  Shores  display. 


When  scepter'd  Tyrants  mount  the  trophid  Car, 

And  scatter  Havock  from  the  Wheels  of  War  ; 

Curst  by  Mankind,  they  lance  the  Lightning's  Flame, 

And  sink  in  Virtue,  as  they  rise  in  Fame. 

Far  nobler  he,  who  sheaths  the  murd'rous  Blade, 

And  clothes  his  Mountains  with  the  Olive's  Shade. 


Whose  patriot  Wisdom  civil  Life  refines, 
Whose  Radiance  warms  and  blesses  as  it  shines, 
Such  Britain's  Prince,  whose  placid  Beam  displays 
The  milder  Glories  of  unsullied  Praise  : 
'  Tis  his  to  break  Oppression's  galling  Chain, 
And  fix  o'er  India  Freedom's  gentler  Reign. 


402 


ALMANACK    FOR    1769. 


SEPTEMBER.    See  !  Where  on  Canada's  untutor'd  Youth 

Already  beam  the  Rays  of  Heav'n  born  Truth ! 
See  !  plume  crown'd  Chiefs  each  social  Blessing  taste, 
And  rising  Towers  adorn  th'  illuinin'd  Waste ; 
See !  cultur'd  Meads  their  golden  Fruits  display, 
Where  rang'd  the  hunter  Savage  as  his  Prey ! 


OCTOBER. 


NOVEMBER. 


DECEMBER. 


No  more  the  Sachem  views  Kiwasa's  Form, 
Frown  in  the  Cloud,  or  mutter  in  the  Storm, 
Religion's  beams  the  darksome  Mists  dispel, 
Where  Ign'rance  broods  in  Superstition's  Cell, 
Ev'n  there  shall  Science  spread  her  hallow'd  Store, 
And  Art's  fair  Empire  grace  Ontario's  Shore. 


Some  future  LOCKE  with  Reason's  keenest  Ray, 
Pierce  the  rich  Font  of  intellectu'l  Day, 
The  subtil  Ties  of  Complex  Thought  unbind, 
And  fix  each  Movement  of  the  varying  Mind. 
Some  second  NEWTON  trace  Creation's  Laws, 
Through  each  Dependance  to  the  sov'reign  Cause. 


Some  MII/TON  plan  his  bold  impassion'd  Theme, 
Stretch'd  in  the  Banks  of  Oxallana's  Stream, 
Another  SHAKESPEAR  shall  Ohio  claim, 
And  boast  its  Floods  allied  to  Avon's  Fame. 
There  too  shall  Sculpture  warm  the  featur'd  Stone, 
And  Canvas  glow  with  Beauties  not  its  own. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

What  but  Devotion  makes  Bramins  keep  Instruments  to  torment  them 
selves  ? 

What  but  entrancing  Opium  makes  the  Turks  give  up  their  Manhood 
and  Freedom  to  Bashaws  and  their  Janissaries. 

What  but  Madness  or  Folly  makes  Americans  do  either  ? 


True  Religion  is  true  Reason. 

A  chearful  mind  and  thankful  Heart  is  the  most  grateful  offering  to 
Heaven. 

Unity  is  a  better  Guard  than  military. 


A  Horse  laugh  is  as  far  from  Chearfulness  as  Sowerness  is  from  Sorrow 
or  Religion. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1769.  403 

Patience  though  a  slow  Remedy  is  sure. 

Marry  thy  Sons  when  thou  wilt,  thy  Daughters  when  thou  canst. 

The  Learned  are  only  a  Family  scattered  among  all  Nations. 


Who  would  sell  his  Birth  Right  for  a  Mess  of  Soup,  or  risque  his  Con 
stitution  for  a  Sip  of  Tea. 

Let  us  keep  Master  of  our  own  Consciences  and  Purses,  and  no  Matter 
what  Prince  we  are  under. 

Learning  is  the  Spoil  of  other  Mens  Labours. 


Gay  Nature's  renewing  all  Things. 
Dictate  to  Obey. 

In  each  Creature  you  may  see 

The  Effect  of  Love's  Decree. 
The  Spectator  warns  the  Ladies  to  be  very  circumspect  this  Month. 


Men  of  Wars  Press  Gangs  appear  in  Boston,  1768,  to  the  Scandal  of  the 
Sons  of  Freedom. 

I  would  sooner  pistol  a  Man  for  robbing  me  of  Liberty,  than  for 
robbing  me  of  my  Purse. 

Necessity  is  the  Shadow  of  an  Excuse  for  the  last,  but  the  first  has 
none  at  all. 

Morality  is  the  Life  of  Religion. 

Some  true  Catholics  &  a  few  Politicians  may  be  found  in  all  Nations. 
There  may  one  Day  be  a  Uniformity  in  Politics  and  Religion  through 
the  World. 

By  your  Bye  a  Mistress  chuse, 

By  your  Ear  a  Wife. 
That  grown  plain  you  may  refuse ; 
This  must  last  for  Life. 


By  constant  Eating  none  grow  strong, 

Or  constant  reading  wise. 
Sometimes  cull  Wisdom  from  the  Throng, 

Get  Strength  by  Exercise. 

To  know  a  Man's  true  Character  take  him  at  Home ;  not  as  he  appears 
in  Publick. 

Never  intreat  thy  Servant  to  stay  with  thee,  or  trust  him  thy  Secrets, 
for  that  will  make  him  thy  Master. 

Think  of  Ease  but  Work  on,  for  Hope  is  all  our  Joy  below. 


When  thou  buyest,  suspect  Ornaments  and  Commendations. 


404  ALMANACK  FOR  1769. 

It  is  not  absurd  to  exclaim  against  foreign  Luxuries,  and  at  the  same 
time  make  those  who  live  by  introducing  them,  the  Leaders  of  our 
Fashions. 

Before  you  speak  Evil  of  Dignities  upon  hear  say,  consider  whether  if 
you  was  in  Place,  you  would  not  be  liable  to  Mistakes,  or  to  be  belied. 

Lend  Money  to  thy  Enemy— thou  wilt  gain  him  to  thy  Friend  and 
thou  wilt  lose  him. 

We  all  set  out  on  the  Journey  of  Life  on  equal  Footing.  Why  should 
Fellow  Travellers  fight,  rob,  or  enslave  each  other?  But  Accounts  will  be 
balanced  at  the  End. 


An  Indian  Story. 

From  the  treacherous  Behaviour  of  those  who  are  called  the 
politest  Nation  of  Europe,  we  may  see  how  little  the  refinements 
in  the  arts  of  civil  Life  have  contributed  to  enforce  the  Princi 
ples  of  Justice  and  Humanity.  Monsieur  du-Pratz,  in  his  history 
of  Louisiana  relates  that  a  Quarrel  having  arisen  between  the 
French  and  the  Natchez,  one  of  the  principal  Nations  on  the 
Banks  of  the  Missisippi  River,  a  War  of  course  ensued,  which 
having  lasted  only  four  Days,  was  ended  at  the  request  of  the 
Frenchmen,  and  peace  regularly  and  formally  concluded.  Not 
withstanding  this  in  a  short  time  after  the  French  fell  upon  them 
unawares  in  the  Night  and  when  they  thought  themselves  in 
perfecl  security,  making  great  slaughter  among  them,  and  oblig 
ing  them  to  give  one  of  their  oldest  Chiefs  to  procure  a  peace. 
The  discourse  which  our  Author  had  with  one  of  them  soon  after 
this  Affair  will  give  the  Reader  a  very  favorable  opinion  of  the 
Native  good  Sense  of  these  unhappy  People,  and  shew  the 
Cruelty  of  treating  them  in  so  base  and  treacherous  a  Manner. — 
"  I,  says  he,  one  Day  stopped  the  Stung  Serpent,  who  was  pass 
ing  along  without  taking  Notice  of  any  one ;  he  was  Brother  to 
the  Great  Sun  and  chief  of  the  Warriors  of  the  Natchez.  I 
accordingly  called  to  him,  and  said,  we  wrere  once  Friends,  are 
we  no  longer  so  ?  he  answered,  No-co,  that  is  I  cannot  tell.  I 
replied,  you  used  to  come  to  my  House,  at  present  you  pass  by ; 
have  you  forgot  the  way  or  is  my  House  disagreeable  to  you  ;  as 
for  me  my  Heart  is  always  the  same,  both  towards  you,  and  to 
wards  all  my  friends.  I  am  not  capable  of  changing,  why  then 


ALMANACK  FOR  1769.  405 

are  you  changed  ?  He  took  sometime  to  answer,  and  seemed  em 
barrassed  by  what  I  had  said  to  him  :  he  never  went  to  the  Fort, 
but  when  sent  for  by  the  Commandant,  who  put  me  upon  sound 
ing  him  in  order,  to  discover  whether  his  People  still  retained 
any  grudge.  He  at  length  broke  silence,  and  told  me  he  was 
ashamed  to  have  been  so  long  without  seeing  me,  but  I  imagined, 
said  he,  that  you  were  displeased  at  our  Nation,  because  among 
all  the  French  in  the  War,  you  were  the  only  one  that  fell  upon 
us.  You  are  in  the  wrong  said  I  to  think  so,  M.  Bienville  being 
our  War  Chief  we  are  bound  to  obey  him,  in  like  manner  as  you, 
tho'  a  Sun,  are  obliged  to  kill  or  cause  to  be  killed  whomsoever 
your  Brother  the  Great  Sun  orders  to  be  put  to  Death.  Many 
other  Frenchmen  besides  me  sought  an  Opportunity  to  attack 
your  Countrymen  in  obedience  to  the  Orders  of  our  War  Chief, 
and  some  were  killed  by  yours.  He  then  said,  I  did  not  approve 
as  you  know,  the  War  our  People  made  upon  the  French,  to 
avenge  the  Death  of  their  Relation,  seeing  I  made  them  carry 
the  Pipe  of  Peace  to  the  French;  this  you  well  know,  as  you 
first  smoaked  in  the  Pipe  yourself.  Have  the  French  two 
Hearts,  a  good  one  to-day  and  to-morrow  a  bad  one  ?  As  for  my 
Brother  and  me,  we  have  but  one  Heart  and  word,  tell  me  then 
if  thou  art,  as  thou  sayest,  my  true  Friend,  what  thou  thinkest 
of  all  this,  and  shut  thy  Mouth  to  every  thing  else  ;  we  know 
not  what  to  think  of  the  French,  who,  after  having  begun 
the  War,  granted  a  Peace,  and  offered  it  of  themselves;  and 
then  at  the  time  we  were  quiet,  believing  ourselves  to  be  at 

Peace.  People  come  to  kill  us  without  saying  a  word. Why, 

continued  he,  with  an  Air  of  Displeasure,  did  the  French  come 
into  our  Country?  we  did  not  go  to  seek  them,  they  asked 
Land  of  us  because  their  Country  was  too  little  for  all  the  Men 
that  were  in  it ;  we  told  them  they  might  take  Land  where  they 
pleased,  there  was  land  enough  for  them  and  for  us ;  that  it  was 
good  the  same  Sun  should  enlighten  us  both,  and  that  we  should 
walk  as  Friends  in  the  same  Path  ;  and  that  we  would  give  them 
of  our  provisions,  assist  them  to  build  and  to  labour  in  the  Fields; 
we  have  done  so.  Is  not  this  true  ?  What  Occasion  then  had  we 
for  Frenchmen  ?  Before  they  came  did  not  we  live  better  than  we 
do,  seeing  we  deprive  ourselves  of  a  Part  of  our  Corn,  our  Game 
and  Fish  to  give  a  Part  to  them  ?  In  what  respect  then  had  we 


406  ALMANACK    FOR    1769. 

Occasion  for  them?  Was  it  for  their  Guns?  The  Bows  and 
Arrows  which  we  used  were  sufficient  to  make  us  live  well. 
Was  it  for  their  white,  blue  and  red  Blankets  ?  We  can  do  well 
enough  with  Buffalo  Skins,  which  are  warmer;  our  Women 
wrought  Feather  Blankets  for  the  Winter  and  Mulberry  Mantles 
for  the  Summer,  which  indeed,  were  not  so  beautiful,  but  our 
Women  were  more  laborious  and  less  vain  than  they  are  now. 
In  fine,  before  the  Arrival  of  the  French,  we  lived  like  Men  who 
can  be  satisfied  with  what  they  have  ;  whereas,  at  this  Day  we 
are  like  Slaves  who  are  not  suffered  to  do  as  they  please."  A 
People  who  could  think  and  reason  in  this  manner  were  too 
obnoxious  to  Frenchmen  and  French  Governors ;  the  latter, 
therefore,  took  every  opportunity  to  oppress  then:,  which  pro 
voked  them  nobly  to  resolve  on,  and  partly  execute  a  Scheme  for 
a  general  Massacre  of  their  insolent  and  tyrannical  Oppressors. 
At  a  Council  held  on  that  important  Occasion,  one  of  their  Chiefs 
spoke  as  follows :  "  We  have  a  long  Time  been  sensible  that  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  French  is  a  greater  prejudice  than  benefit 
to  us ;  we  who  are  old  Men  see  this,  the  young  see  it  not.  The 
wares  of  the  French  yield  pleasure  to  the  Youth ;  but  in  effect 
to  what  Purpose  is  all  this,  but  to  debauch  the  young  women, 
and  taint  the  Blood  of  the  Nation  and  make  them  vain  and  idle? 
The  Young  Men  are  in  the  same  case  ;  the  married  must  work 
themselves  to  Death  to  maintain  their  Families,  and  please  their 
Children.  Before  the  French  came  among  us  we  were  Men,  con 
tent  with  what  we  had,  and  that  was  sufficient ;  we  walked  with 
boldness  every  Road,  because  we  were  then  our  own  Masters; 
but  now  we  go  groping  afraid  of  meeting  them ;  we  walk  like 
Slaves,  which  we  shall  soon  be,  since  the  French  already  treat 
us  as  if  we  were  such ;  when  they  are  sufficiently  strong  they 
will  no  longer  dissemble,  for  the  lest  Fault  of  our  young  People 
they  will  tie  them  to  a  Post  and  whip  them  as  they  do  their  black 
Slaves ;  have  they  not  already  done  so  to  one  of  our  young  Men, 
and  is  not  Death  preferable  to  Slavery. — Here  he  paused  a  while 
and  after  taking  Breath  thus  proceeded. — What  wait  we  for, 
shall  we  suffer  the  French  to  multiply  till  we  are  no  longer  able 
to  oppose  their  Efforts  ?  what  will  other  Nations  say  of  us  who 
pass  for  the  most  ingenious  of  all  the  Red  Men  ?  They  will  then 
say  we  have  less  Understanding  than  other  people :  Why  then 


ALMANACK    FOR    1769.  407 

wait  we  any  longer  ?  I^et  us  set  ourselves  at  Liberty,  and  shew  we 
are  really  Men  who  can  be  satisfied  with  what  we  have." — The 
Chief  then  proceeded  to  lay  down  the  particulars  of  his  design  ;  a 
Plot  formed  with  the  Art,  and  carried  on  with  all  the  Precaution 
which  would  have  done  Honour  to  a  Roman  or  Grecian  Story  ; 
but  which,  like  many  other  great  Designs,  miscarried  by  the  fatal 
Influence  of  a  Woman,  who  found  Means  to  penetrate  the  Secret 
and  then  betrayed  it.  Whereupon  the  French  massacred  the 
bigger  Part,  and  at  length  extirpated  every  Soul  of  this  sensible 
Nation. 


OH  T7l»9» — The  Almanack  this  year  encourages  by  a  well 
written  article,  the  culture  of  Silk,  Silkworms  and  Mulberry  trees,  which 
industry  seems  to  have  been  seriously  considered  by  the  economists  of 
the  later  Colonial  period.  A  history  of  the  growth  of  the  enterprise  in 
other  countries  is  included,  and  also  a  poetic  description  of  "  Worm  life"1 
and  the  proper  method  of  caring  for  the  Worms,  Cocoons,  etc. 

Patriotism  shines  in  every  line  of  the  poem,  and  indicates  the  "  rising  " 
about  to  occupy  the  attention  of  New  England's  sons ;  and  the  possibility 

1  "  The  whole  Nation  into  Tribes  divide, 

And  give  them  different  Mansions  to  reside ; 

This  more  than  once,  as  often  as  you  view, 

Their  rooms  too  narrow  for  the  growing  Crew  : 

Nor  cease  dividing  and  removing  still, 

'Till  every  Shelf  and  every  Lodge  you  fill ; 

Mean  while,  neglect  not  with  immediate  food 

To  cherish  and  support  the  new-born  brood ; 

With  their  first  Breath  they'll  draw  their  Pastures  in, 

At  once  they  Hunger  and  their  Lives  begin. 

When  for  one  Night  thro'  wretched  lust  of  Gain, 

Laid  up  in  Stores  the  gather'd  Leaves  remain, 

Their  wholesome  use  is  by  corruption  cross'd, 

Their  Taste  ungrateful,  and  their  Flavor  lost. 

— Take  thou  Care  with  moderate  Hand  to  strow, 

And  only  thrice  each  Day  their  Food  bestow ; 

— Should  you  stint  their  Forage,  or  refuse 

The  wonted  comfort  of  their  daily  dues, 

A  dire  Disease  invades  the  starving  Worms, 

And  meagre  leanness  all  the  Flock  deforms ; 

With  Wine  perfum'd  besprinkle  and  expel 

From  the  purg'd  Mansions  each  offensive  smell." — Vida. 


408  ALMANACK  FOR  1769. 

perhaps,  of  its  creating  some  little  interest  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlan 
tic.  The  future  grandeur  of  the  republic  is  pictured,  and  the  advent  of 
new  Lockes,  Newtons,  Milton,  and  a  Shakspeare,  prophesied  as  not  un 
likely  happenings  in  the  new  Western  land. 

An  Indian  tale  is  recited  at  length  as  illustrative  of  the  Punic  faith  of 
some  European  nations,  and  is  to  be  taken  as  a  lesson  for  the  times. 

Wit  and  Humor,  Morality  and  Religion,  in  homeopathic  doses  are 
prescribed  in  their  proper  places.  A  parallel  between  Bramins,  Turks  and 
Americans  is  illustrated.  The  "  Tea "  question  is  briefly  hinted  at,  the 
arrival  of  the  "Press  Gang"  mentioned,  and  many  a  wise  remark  well 
worthy  of  repetition,  even  at  this  day. 


The  old  Slitting  Mill  formerly  owned  by  Mr.  Jackson  at 
Milton,  which  has  been  long  out  of  Repair,  is  now  in  good  order 
and  will  cut  Iron  in  a  few  Days ;  those  Persons  who  will  send 
Iron  to  the  Mill  may  have  it  cut  for  £6  i2S.  4d.  per  Ton,  which 
is  ^4  cheaper  per  Ton  than  ever  it  was  cut  before. 

JAMES  BOIES. 
Paper  Mill  there  is  still  in  want  of  RAGS. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1770.  409 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR  1770. 


By   Nathaniel  Ames. 

B OS  TON: 

Printed  and  Sold  by  the  Printers  and  Booksellers,  at 
2S.  8d.  per  Dozen,  and  Six  Coppers  single. 


To  all  inferior  Animals  'tis  given 

T'  enjoy  the  State  allotted  them  by  Heaven. 

No  vain  Researches  e'er  disturb  their  Rest, 

No  Fears  of  dark  Futurity  molest. 

Man,  only  Man  solicitous  to  know 

The  Springs  whence  Nature's  Operations  flow, 

Plods  thro'  a  dreary  Waste  with  Toil  and  Pain, 

And  Reasons,  hopes  and  thinks,  and  lives  in  vain, 

For  sable  Death  still  hovering  o'er  his  Head 

Cuts  short  his  Progress  with  his  vital  Thread. 

Wherefore  since  Nature  errs  not  do  we  find         ^ 

These  Seeds  of  Science  in  the  human  Mind 

If  no  congeneal  Fruits  are  predesign'd  ! 

For  what  avails  to  Man  his  Power  to  roam 

Thro'  Ages  past  and  Ages  yet  to  come, 

T'  explore  new  Worlds  o'er  all  the  sethereal  Way, 

Chain'd  to  a  Spot,  and  living  but  a  Day? 


The  making  of  Paper  at  Milton  has  been  a  great  Saving  to 
the  Province;  It  is  earnestly  desired  that  People  would  save 
their  Cotton  and  lyinnen  Rags,  for  which  they  will  receive  a  good 
Price  from  the  Paper  maker.  A  small  Paper  Bag  hung  up  in  a 
room,  to  put  in  every  piece  would  prevent  their  being  swept 
into  the  Fire  or  out  of  Doors. 


JANUARY.          Because  we  are  unable  to  conceive 

How  unembody'd  Souls  can  act  and  live, 

The  Vulgar  give  them  Forms  and  Limbs  and  Faces, 

And  Habitations  in  peculiar  Places. 

Hence  Reasoners  more  refin'd,  but  not  more  wise, 

Their  whole  Existence  fabulous  surmise. 


410 


ALMANACK  FOR  1770. 


FEBRUARY 


MARCH. 


APRIL. 


MAY. 


JUNE. 


JULY. 


Come  say  they  let's  feast  let  Chloe  sing, 
And  soft  Necera  touch  the  trembling  string, 
Enjoy  the  present  Hour,  nor  seek  to  know 
What  Good  or  111  To-morrow  may  bestow ; 
But  these  Delights  soon  pall  upon  the  Taste, 
Let's  try  then  if  more  serious  cannot  lest, 
Wealth  let  us  heap  on  Wealth,  or  Fame  pursue, 
Let  Power  and  Glory  be  our  Points  in  view. 


Each  weak  Attempt  the  same  sad  Lesson  brings, 

Alas  !  What  Vanity  in  human  Things. 

What  Means  then  shall  we  try !  where  hope  to  find 

A  friendly  Harbour  for  the  restless  Mind, 

Who  still,  you  see,  impatient,  to  obtain 

Knowledge  immense  (to  Nature's  Law  ordain.) 


Hear  then  my  Argument — confess  we  must 

A  GOD  there  is,  supremely  wise  and  just ; 

If  so  however  Things  affect  our  Sight, 

As  sings  our  Bard,  Whatever  is  is  right, 

But  is  it  right  what  here  so  oft  appears 

That  Vice  should  triumph  Virtue  sink  in  Tears  ? 


The  Inference  then  that  closes  this  Debate 
Is  that  there  must  exist  a  future  State  ! 
The  Wise  extending  their  Enquiries  wide 
See  how  both  States  are  by  Connection  ty'd ; 
Fools  view  but  Part,  and  not  the  Whole  survey, 
So  crowd  Existence  all  into  a  Day. 


Hence  are  they  led  to  hope,  but  hope  in  vain 
That  Justice  never  will  resume  her  reign, 
On  this  vain  hope  Adulterers,  Thieves  rely, 
And  to  this  altar  vile  assassins  fly. 
But  rules  not  God  by  general  Laws  divine  ? 
Man's  Vice  or  Virtue  change  not  the  Design. 


Rate  not  the  Extension  of  the  human  Mind 
By  the  Plebean  Standard  of  Mankind ; 
But  by  the  Size  of  those  gigantic  few 
Whom  Greece  and  Rome  still  offer  to  our  view. 
Or  Britain  once  deserving  equal  Praise, 
Parent  of  Heroes  too  in  better  Days. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1770. 


AUGUST. 


SEPTEMBER. 


OCTOBER. 


NOVEMBER. 


DECEMBER. 


Why  should  I  try  her  num'rous  sons  to  name 
By  Verse,  Law,  Eloquence  consign'd  to  Fame  ? 
Or  who  have  forc'd  fair  Science  into  sight 
Long  lost  in  Darkness  and  afraid  of  Light. 
O'er  all  superior,  like  the  solar  ray, 
First  Bacon  usher'd  in  the  dawning  Day, 
And  drove  the  Mists  of  Sophistry  away. 


Pervaded  Nature  with  amazing  force, 

Following  Experience  still  thro'  out  his  Course, 

And  finishing  at  length  his  destin'd  Way, 

To  Newton  he  bequeath'd  the  radiant  Lamp  of  Day. 

Illustrious  Souls  !  if  any  tender  Cares 

Affect  angelic  Breasts  for  Man's  Affairs. 


If  in  your  present  happy  heavenly  state 
You're  not  regardless  quite  of  Britain's  fate, 
Let  that  degen'rate  land  again  be  blest 
With  that  true  Virtvie  which  she  free  possess'd, 
Compell  her  to  unfold  her  slumbring  eyes 
And  to  her  antient  Dignity  to  rise. 


The  Soul  tho'  fetter'd  in  corporeal  Clay 
Climes  Step  by  Step  the  Prospect  to  survey 
And  seeks  unwearied,  Truth's  eternal  Ray. 
No  fleeting  Joys  she  asks  which  must  depend 
On  the  frail  Senses,  and  with  them  must  end ; 
But  such  as  suit  her  own  immortal  Fame 
Free  from  all  Change  eternally  the  same. 


Of  those  what  think  you  who  the  circling  Race, 

Of  suns  and  their  revolving  planets  trace, 

And  Comets  journeying  through  unbounded  space 

Say  can  you  doubt  but  that  th'  all  searching  soul 

That  now  can  traverse  heaven  from  pole,  to  pole, 

From  thence  descending,  visits  but  this  earth, 

And  shall  once  more  regain  the  regions  of  her  birth  ? 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 


The  Politicians  spin  so  fine  a  Thread 

That  Princes  think  they  lead,  when  the)'  are  led. 


412  ALMANACK   FOR    1770. 

So  cold  that  all  Business,  even  Cuckold  making  ceases  uow-a-days,  but 
the  Tongue  of  Slander  is  always  limber. 
God  helps  them  that  help  themselves. 


The  Cold  relents,  yet  not  so  much  but  that  the  Sluggard  chuses  to  burn 
his  Shins  rather  than  stir  abroad. 

Sloth  like  Rust  consumes  faster  than  Labor  wears,  while  the  used  Key 
is  always  bright. 

Dost  thou  love  Life  ?  improve  Time  for  that's  the  stuff  Life's  made  of. 


The  sleeping  Fox  catches  no  Poultry,  and  there  will  be  sleeping 
enough  in  the  Grave. 

God  has  fitted  our  Constitutions  to  the  Climate  we  live  in,  turn  out, 
you  Sluggard,  and  shake  off  the  Scurvy.  Thou  art  neither  Sugar  nor  Salt. 

Handle  your  Tools  without  Mittins,  remember  the  Cat  in  Gloves 
catches  no  mice. 

He  that  riseth  late  must  trot  all  Day,  and  shall  scarce  overtake  his 
Business  at  Night. 

Laziness  always  travels  so  slow  that  Poverty  soon  overtakes  him. 

He  that  hath  a  Trade  hath  an  Estate,  and  he  that  hath  a  Calling  hath 
an  Office  of  Profit  &  Honor. 

Many  without  Labour  would  live  by  their  Wits  only  but  they  break 
for  want  of  Stock. 

Three  removes  is  as  bad  as  a  Fire. 

Keep  thy  Shop,  and  thy  Shop  will  keep  thee. 

Dilligence  is  the  mother  of  good  luck,  and  God  giveth  all  things  to 
industry — then  sow  deep  while  Sluggards  sleep,  and  you'll  have  corn  to 
sell  and  to  keep. 

He  that  by  the  Plough  would  thrive,  himself  must  either  hold  or  drive. 
Not  to  oversee  your  workmen  is  to  leave  them  your  purse  open. 
In  affairs  of  this  world  men  are  saved  not  by  faith  but  by  the  want  of  it. 
Learning  is  for  the  studious,  riches  for  the  careful,  power  for  the  bold, 
and  heaven  for  the  virtuous. 

A  little  neglect  may  breed  a  great  mischief,  for  want  of  a  nail  the  shoe 
was  lost,  for  want  of  a  shoe  the  horse  was  lost,  for  want  of  a  horse  the 
rider  was  lost,  being  overtaken  by  the  enemy,  all  for  the  want  of  a  horse 
shoe  nail. 

Since  women  for  tea  forsook  spinning  and  knitting  and  men  for  punch 
forsook  hewing  &  splitting,  many  fair  estates  are  spent  in  the  getting. 

A  man  if  he  knows  not  how  to  save  as  he  gets  may  keep  his  nose  all  his 
life  to  the  grindstone  and  die  not  worth  a  groat. 

The  diligent  eye  of  the  master  will  do  more  work  than  both  his  hands. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1770.  413 

Who  dainties  love  shall  beggars  prove. 

Fools  make  feasts,  and  wise  men  eat  them. 

If  you  would  know  the  value  of  money,  go  and  try  to  borrow  some. 

Fond  pride  of  dress  is  sure  a  very  curse 

E'er  fancy  you  consult,  consult  your  purse. 
Pride  is  as  loud  a  beggar  as  want. 

Some  when  they  have  got  their  bargain  think  little  of  payment,  but 
creditors  have  better  memories  than  debtors. 

Creditors  are  a  very  superstitious  sect,  being  great  observers  of  set 
days  &  times. 

For  age  and  want  save  while  you  may,  no  morning  sun  lasts  a  whole 
day. 

Tis  easier  to  build  two  chimnies  than  to  keep  one  in  fewel.  So  rather 
go  supperless  to  bed  than  rise  in  debt. 

Experience  keeps  a  dear  school  but  fools  will  learn  in  no  other,  and 
scarce  in  that. 

If  you  will  not  hear  reason,  she  will  certainly  one  day  rap  your 
knuckles. 

Constant  dropping  wears  away  stones — little  strokes  fell  great  oaks. 

Silks  &  sattins  put  out  the  kitchen  fire. 

The  artificial  wants  of  mankind  are  more  numerous  than  the  natural. 

A  child  and  a  fool  imagine  that  twenty  shillings  &  twenty  years  can 
never  be  spent,  but  always  taking  out  of  the  meal  tub  and  never  putting 
in,  soon  come  to  the  bottom. 


An  ESSAY  on  PHYSICK. 

In  this  degenerate  age,  when  most  men  are  more  solicitous 
for  the  gratification  of  their  sensual  appetites  and  passions,  than 
for  the  spread  of  true  religion  and  impartial  justice  through  the 
land,  is  it  not  some  how  unaccountable  to  see  such  ample  pro 
tection  afforded  to  the  pulpit  and  the  bar  from  the  intrusion  of  vile 
illiterate  pretenders,  while  the  important  art  of  preserving  health 
(without  which  we  cannot  indulge  those  appetites  and  passions,) 
lies  open  to  the  intrusion  of  every  ignorant  drone  that  assume  the 
title  of  doctor,  to  rob  his  Majesty's  good  subjects  of  New  England 
not  only  of  their  estates,  but  of  joints  and  limbs,  and  even  life 
itself.  Is  it  not  surprizing  that  we  should  still  behold,  without 


414  ALMANACK   FOR    1770. 

emulation  a  neighbouring  province1  so  far  get  the  start  of  us  in 
the  cultivation  of  this  noble  science,  which,  of  all  others,  most 
needs  the  protection  of  civil  authority?  for  any  man  may,  at 
first  hearing,  form  a  tolerable  judgment  of  a  lawyer  or  minister  ; 
and  any  tradesman  is  known  by  his  works ;  but  of  a  physician, 
none  but  a  philosopher  can  judge.  Why  has  no  one  amongst  us 
attempted  to  immortalize  his  name  by  making  a  donation  to  one  of 
our  colleges  for  a  professor  of  physick,  &c?  If  'tis  of  importance 
that  a  man  should  know  the  make  and  machinery  of  a  clock  or 
watch  before  he  attempts  to  mend  them  how  much  more  important 
is  it  that  a  physician  should  know  the  make  and  machinery  of  the 
body,  which  is  an  infinitely  more  curious  machine  or  piece  of  clock 
work  than  any  thing  contriv'd  by  man  ;  yet  it  is  not  so  intricate 
but  that  some  great  souls  have,  and  daily  are  making  such 
discoveries  of  its  make  and  construction  as  are  surprizing  to 
those  that  are  capable  of  diving  into  those  mysteries.  What  can 
we  impute  that  absurd  opinion  to,  of  many,  that  a  bone  setter 
must  be  born,  or  divinely  inspired  with  the  art?  while  the 
physician,  that  pretends  to  no  such  supernatural  gift,  altho'  he 
has  spent  the  bloom  of  life  in  stinking  hospitals,  at  lectures  of 
anatomy  upon  dead  carcasses,  and  knows  exactly  the  make  of 
every  joint,  &c.,  knows  nothing  of  the  matter,  and  must  give 
place  to  an  ignorant  wretch  that  has  nothing  but  his  impudence 
to  recommend  him  ;  what  can  we  impute  that  eagerness  to, 
where  with  people  swallow  the  nauseous  messes  of  every  secret 
monger  without  examining  by  what  authority  he  dares  practice 
an  art  that  if  he  were  in  England  he  would  be  liable  to  suffer  for 
as  a  felon.  I  can  think  of  no  other  reason  than  this,  viz.  that 
common  people  imagine  (and  in  the  present  low  orphan  state  of 
physick  in  New  England)  they  have  some  reason  to  imagine,  the 
whole  art  to  be  but  mere  empiricism,  founded  in  the  experience 
of  each  practitioner,  who  is  possess'd  of  a  number  of  secrets  for 
the  cure  of  any  disease,  which  he  blindfold  administers  on  all 
occasions,  without  setting  his  reason  to  work  to  find  out  which 
of  the  pipes,  springs,  or  strainers  is  out  of  order  in  the  curious 

1  Pennsylvania  where  a  public  Hospital,  Professor  and  Lecturer  are 
provided ;  and  Funds  established  for  their  Maintenance  :  They  also  confer 
Doctor's  Degrees. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1770.  415 

frame,  whether  they  want  stiffening  or  loosening,  oiling  or 
cleaning,  &c.  and  a  thousand  other  things  that  come  under  con 
sideration  with  a  true  physician  before  he  attempts  to  apply  the 
medicine ;  indeed  this  might  be  the  case  3000  years  ago,  when 
physick  was  in  the  hand  of  the  priests,  who  being  covetous  of 
wealth  and  respect  from  the  people,  concealed  the  art  under  the 
pomp  of  superstition,  making  them  believe  they  had  immediate 
direction  from  their  Gods  concerning  the  cure  of  any  disease  ; 
so  when  any  patient  asked  their  advice,  they  immediately  fell  to 
sacrificing  some  beast,  and  because  the  Gods  would  accept  none 
but  a  sound  animal,  the  priests  always  very  carefully  examin'd 
the  entrails,  which  with  the  custom  of  embalming  and  opening 
their  dead,  &c.  helped  them  to  some  knowledge  of  the  structure 
of  the  human  body,  as  also  the  causes  of  health,  sickness  and 
death,  and  these  joined  to  their  improvements  in  philosophy 
laid  the  first  foundation  of  the  art,  each  generation  improving 
upon  and  adding  to  the  discoveries  of  their  predecessors,  rais'd 
its  importance  and  reputation,  yet  it  was  a  lame  and  perplexing 
business  till  within  this  hundred  years,  when  the  immortal 
Harvey  with  a  more  than  human  penetration  remov'd  those 
doubts  and  perplexities,  by  making  such  a  discovery,  not  of  any 
Indian  root  or  herb,  but  of  the  secret  operations  of  nature 
within  the  body,  as  established  the  profession  upon  a  sure  basis, 
and  raised  it  to  the  first  dignity  among  arts  and  sciences.  It  is 
esteemed  a  necessary  part  of  polite  education.  Princes  and 
nobles  learn  its  theory,  and  its  practitioners  have  been  ennobled. 
Most  civilized  nations  esteeming  their  greatest  strength  to  con 
sist  in  the  number  of  healthy  subjects,  have  made  ample  pro 
vision  for  carrying  the  medical  art  to  the  highest  perfection  by 
endowing  colleges  and  corporations  of  physicians,  publick  hos 
pitals  and  botanical  gardens,  whose  members  even  of  different 

nations  at  war  hold  friendly  correspondence. The  college  of 

physicians  in  London  was  founded  by  Dr.  Linacre  physician  to 
King  Henry  8th,  to  which  the  great  Harvey  added  a  library  and 
public  hall  in  1652  endowing  the  same  with  his  whole  inherit 
ance,  which  he  resigned  while  he  was  yet  living  and  in  health, 
the  physicians  hereof  have  by  charters  such  privileges  as  exclude 
all  others  from  practicing  in  London,  or  within  seven  miles  of  it, 
without  a  license  under  the  college  seal ;  also  persons  practicing 


416  ALMANACK  FOR  1770. 

physick  in  any  part  of  Kngland  are  to  have  letters  testimonial 
from  the  president  and  three  elects,  unless  they  be  graduate 
physicians  of  Oxford  or  Cambridge,  and  all  offenders  in  these  and 
divers  other  cases,  they  may  fine  and  imprison,  they  have  authority 
to  search  all  apothecary's  shops  to  see  if  their  drugs  be  whole 
some,  or  burn  or  destroy  all  such  as  are  not. and  it  is  holden 

that  if  a  person  not  duly  authorized  to  be  a  physician  undertakes 
the  cure  of  a  patient  and  he  dies  under  his  hands  he  is  guilty  of 
felony. 


oil  1770.— The  spirit  of  investigation  blooms  upon  the  title 
page,  and  the  silk  worm  and  the  silk  industry  again  are  called  to  the  atten 
tion  of  the  colonists,  with  an  allusion  to  the  general  encouragement  given 
to  home  productions  ;*  the  "  People  being  determined  no  longer  to  neglect 
the  One  Thing  needful  for  their  Political  Salvation." 

The  theory  of  Futurity  is  poetically  elaborated  in  the  course  of  the 
months,  and  as  the  Almanack  would  not  be  complete  without  the  essay — 
a  sermon  on  Physick  is  introduced  calling  special  attention  to  the  neces 
sity  of  maintaining  colleges  for  the  study  of  Medicine  and  Surgery  ;  con 
demning  in  no  mild  tone  the  disreputable  practices  of  those  unlicensed 
vagabonds  denominated  quacks. 

The  seasoning  to  the  practical  part  of  the  almanack  still  interests  us. 
Business  appears  aivful  dull  in  January,  so  the  Doctor  finds  occasion  in 
this  and  the  succeeding  months,  to  berate  laziness  and  cudgel  the  slug 
gard.  Diligence  and  industry  appear  to  be  the  burden  of  his  song  the 
entire  year  through. 

1  Alluding  to  the  Gentleman  who  offered  the  Premiums  last  year,  Dr. 
Ames  says  :  "  This  great  Encourager  of  American  Manufactures  now  wears 
Stockings  made  of  Silk  entirely  raised  and  manufactured  among  us,  so 
that  such  Ladies  (if  any  we  have)  as  think  themselves  of  too  delicate  a 
Mould  to  apply  their  Hands  to  the  Distaff,  or  cloath  their  House  in  Scarlet 
from  the  tender  Fleece,  may  find  a  very  genteel  Employment,  for  one 
Month  in  a  Year,  in  assisting  at  the  curious  Operation  of  Nature  in  the 
Production  of  Silk  Worms;  and  for  their  further  Encouragement  will 
inform  them  that  they  may  soon  be  furnish'd  with  Cups  and  Saucers,  equal 
to  the  best  China  Ware  imported,  for  sipping  their  Soul  enchanting  Tea, 
without  molestation,  from  Plants  too,  I  hope,  said  to  be  growing  in 
America;  for  all  the  Materials  are  discovered  amongst  us,  &  Manufac 
tures  are  preparing  them  for  making  China  Ware,  in  Boston  where  the 
best  of  green  and  Tortoise-shell  Ware  is  already  made :  Callicoes  are 
printed  there :  Preparations  are  now  making  for  several  new  Manufac 
tures,  the  People  are  determined  no  longer  to  neglect  the  One  Thing 
Needful  for  their  Political  Salvation" 


ALMANACK   FOR    1771.  417 


THE   ALMANACK   FOR    1771 


By  Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON: 

Printed  and  Sold  by  the  Printers  and  Booksellers,  at 
2  s  8d  per  Dozen,  and  Six  Coppers  single. 


Bards  rapt  beyond  the  Moon  on  Fancy's  Wings, 
And  mighty  Masters  of  the  vocal  Strings  ; 
Those  who  on  laboured  Speeches  waste  their  Oil, 
Those  who  in  crabbed  Calculations  toil, 
Who  measure  Earth,  who  climb  the  starry  Road, 
And  human  Fates  by  heav'nly  Signs  forebode, 
Pleasures  Philosophers,  Lyceum's  Pride, 
Disdainful  soaring  up  to  Heights  untry'd  ; 
From  Science  up  to  Science  let  them  rise, 
And  arrogate  the  swelling  Style  of  Wise, 
Their  Wisdoms  Folly,  impotent  and  blind, 
Which  cures  not  one  Distemper  of  the  Mind, 
'Till  weary  of  their  Vanities,  they've  found 
Th'  exalted  Way  to  Truth's  enlightened  Ground, 
Quaff'd  her  cathartic  and  all  cleans'd  within, 
By  her  strong  Energy,  from  Pride  and  Sin. 


A  DISCOURSE  on  what  is  not  done,  and  on  what  may  be  done, 
from  a  late  eminent  Writer. 

"  Let  the  World  go  as  it  will,  do  your  Duty  indifferently  and 
always  speak  well  of  the  Prior,"  is  an  ancient  maxim  amongst 
the  Monks ;  but  it  is  capable  of  leaving  the  Convent  in  medioc- 
rity,  negligence  and  contempt. 

When  Men  are  not  excited  by  Emulation  they  are  Asses  who 
proceed  on  their  Way  slowly,  stop  at  the  first  obstacles,  and 
quietly  eat  their  Thistles  in  Sight  of  the  Difficulties  that  deter 
them,  but  at  the  Sound  of  the  Voice  that  encouraged  them,  or  at 


418  ALMANACK   FOR 

the  Prick  ot  the  Goad  by  which  they  are  awaked,  they  are  Steeds 
who  run  swiftly  and  leave  behind  the  Difficulties  that  had 
opposed  them.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  Information  of  the  Abbe 
de  St.  Peter  the  Severities  of  the  arbitrary  Subsidies  in  France, 
would  perhaps  never  have  been  abolished,  had  it  not  been  for  the 
Penetration  of  LOCKE  the  Deficiency  in  the  current  Coin  would 
never  have  been  repaired  at  London.  There  are  frequently  Men 
who  without  having  purchased  the  Right  of  judging  their 
Equals,  love  the  public  Welfare,  as  much  as  it  is  sometimes 
neglected  by  those  who  acquire  as  they  purchase  a  Farm,  the 
Power  of  doing  good  and  Evil. 

In  the  first  Ages  of  the  Roman  Empire,  a  Citizen,  whose 
ruling  Passion  was  the  Desire  of  rendering  his  Country  flourish 
ing,  asked  to  speak  to  the  first  Consul ;  when  he  was  told  that 
the  Magistrate  was  at  Table  with  the  Pretor,  the  Edile,  some 
Senators,  their  Mistresses,  and  their  Buffoons ;  on  which  he  put 
into  the  Hands  of  one  of  the  insolent  Slaves,  who  waited  at  Table, 
a  Memorial,  the  Contents  of  which  was  as  follows : 

"  Since  Tyrants  have,  throughout  the  whole  Earth,  done  all 
"  the  Mischief  they  were  able ;  O  ye  who  value  yourselves  on 
"  being  good,  why  do  ye  not  do  all  the  good  in  your  Power? 
"  From  whence  does  it  proceed  that  the  Poor  encompass  your 
"  Temples,  stand  at  the  Corners  of  the  Streets  and  display  a 
"  Misery  unuseful  to  the  State  and  shameful  to  you,  and  this  at  a 
"  Time  when  their  Hands  might  be  employ'd  in  public  Works  ? 
"  How  during  the  Peace  are  those  lazy  Legions  employ'd  who 
"  might  repair  the  Highways  and  the  Citadels?  Those  Marshes 
"  if  they  were  drained  would  no  longer  infedt  the  Provinces,  they 
"  would  become  fertile  Lands, — Those  open  Places  irregular  and 
"  worthy  of  a  barbarous  City  might  by  changed  into  magnificent 
"  Squares, — those  Blocks  of  Marble  heaped  up  on  the  Banks 
"  of  the  Tyber  might  be  hewn  into  Statues,  and  become  the 
"  Recompence  bestow'd  on  Merit  and  Lessons  of  Virtue  that 
"  might  be  heard  in  distant  Ages  ; — your  public  Market-places 
"  ought  to  be  both  commodious  and  magnificent,  and  yet  they 
"  are  inconvenient  and  offensive ;  your  Houses  want  Water 
"  and  your  public  Fountains  are  built  without  Taste,  and  Pro- 
<l  priety  ;  your  principal  Temple  is  a  barbarous  Piece  of  Archi- 
"  tecture,  the  Entrance  to  your  public  Shews,  resembles  the 


ALMANACK    FOR    1771.  419 

"  Passage  to  an  infamous  House,  the  Halls  in  which  the  People 
"  assemble  to  hear  what  is  worthy  the  Admiration  of  the  Uni- 
"  verse  have  neither  Proportion  nor  Grandeur,  nor  Magnificence 
"  nor  Convenience,  the  Palace  of  your  Capitol  is  ready  to  fall, 
"  yet  it  is  inhabited.  In  vain  does  your  Laziness  make  you 
"  ready  to  reply  that  it  would  require  too  much  Money  to  remedy 
"  so  many  abuses  ;  will  this  Money  be  given  to  the  Massagetes 
"and  Cimbrians?  Will  it  not  be  gained  by  Romans,  by  your 
"  Architects,  by  your  Sculptors,  by  your  Painters,  by  your 
"  Artists  ?  These  Artists  when  recompenced  will  restore  this 
"  Money  to  the  State  by  the  new  Expences  in  which  they  will 
"  be  enabled  to  engage :  The  fine  Arts  will  be  held  in  Honor, 
"  they  will  be  at  once  your  Wealth  for  the  richest  People  are 
"  they  who  labor  most.  Listen  then  to  a  noble  Emulation,  that 
"  the  Greeks  who  begin  to  esteem  your  Valor  and  your  Conduct, 
"  may  no  longer  reproach  you  for  your  Rusticity." 

The  Citizen's  Memorial  was  read  at  Table,  the  Council  took 
no  Notice  of  it  but  called  for  Wine,  the  Edile  however  said  it 
contained  some  good  Observations,  and  this  was  all.  The  Con 
versation  turned  on  the  Tartness  of  the  Wine  of  Falerna,  and 
on  the  strength  of  the  Wine  of  Cecuba,  they  bestowed  Praises 
on  a  famous  Cook,  enquired  into  the  Invention  of  a  new  Sauce 
for  Sturgeon,  drank  Healths,  told  two  or  three  insipid  Stories, 
and  fell  asleep.  However  the  Senator  Appius,  who  had  been 
secretly  affected  at  hearing  the  Paper  read,  built  some  time 
after,  the  Appiean  way  ;  Flaminius  made  the  Flaminian  way, 
another  embellished  the  Capitol,  another  built  an  Amphitheatre, 
and  another  the  public  Markets.  Thus  the  Writing  of  an 
obscure  Citizen  was  a  Seed  which  by  little  and  little  grew  and 
produced  Fruit  in  the  Minds  of  the  Great."- 

What  Fruit  is  the  good  Seed  sown  likely  to  produce  in  the 
Minds  of  our  Great,  who  can  supinely  behold  the  Philadelphians 
not  only  outstrip  us  in  the  liberal  Arts  but  also  in  the  mechanic 
Arts,  who  instead  of  importing  immense  Quantities  of  British 
Manufactures,  have  their  ships  entef-  their  Ports  laden  with  Cash 
and  Manufactures  from  England.  Golden  Fruits  of  the  Non 
importation  Agreement ! 


420  ALMANACK   FOR    1771. 

Mr.    FRANKLIN'S   Epitaph  on   himself  curious  for  conveying 
such  solemn  Ideas  in  the  Stile  of  his  Occupation. 


The  Body  of  BENJAMIN  FRANKUN 

Printer, 
Like  the  Covering  of  an  old  Book 

Its  contents  torn  out 
And  stript  of  its  Lettering  and  Gilding, 

Lies  here,  Food  for  Worms; 

But   the  Work  shall   not  be  lost, 

It  will  (as  he  believ'd)  appear  once  more 

In  a  New  and  more  beautiful  Edition 

Corrected  and  amended 

By  the  Author. 

He  was  born  January  6th,   1706  and 
died 17 


In  Bengal  the  Ceremony  of  Marriage  is  according  to  the 
Direction  of  their  spiritual  Guides,  per  form' d  in  standing  Water; 
in  which  the  Priest  and  the  Bridal  Pair  hold  a  Cow  with  her 
Calf  by  the  Tail,  and  pour  Water  upon  them ;  then  he  ties 
the  Cloaths  of  the  Bride  and  Bridegroom  together,  and  walking 
round  the  Cow  and  Calf,  they  are  joined  in  the  Bonds  of  holy 

Wedlock. But  mark  the  Epilogue  of  the  Comedy — the  Parson 

has  the  Cow  and  Calf  for  his  Fee  ! 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

High  Tides  and  violent  Storrn  of !  of !  of ! 

British  Catchpennies  as  well  as  Hybernian  and  Tyburnian  ones. 

Loyalty  is  one  thing  and  Slavery  is  another — but  synonymous  with 
those  who  know  not  Children  from  Servants :  such  Ignorance  would  dis 
grace  even  the  noble  Lyon  and  Unicorn. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1771.  421 

The  alternate  Chills  and  Thaws  in  this  Month  represent  a  long  Court 
ship — as  a  Beehive  does  Matrimony,  for  its  often  empty  &  poor,  sometimes 
rich  in  Wax,  but  insipid  and  tastless  and  sometimes  full  of  Honey,  but 
most  frequently  full  of  Stings. 


Some  are  pleased  with  a  Rattle,  some  with  Jingle  &  some  with  Senti 
ment  and  a  great  many  with  dire  Prognosticks. 

News  from  afar  denotes  a  War. 


Enjoy  the  good  Weather  when  you  can  catch  it  for  it  is  as  variable  as 
Mrs. Temper  this  Month. 

Aeolus  sends  forth  Boreas  &  Auster  who  strive  in  terrible  whirlwinds. 

Some  are  so  polite  as  to  drink  nothing  but  Madeira  abroad — that  can 
hardly  get  Cyder  at  home. — Are  other  Countries  as  fond  of  our  Luxuries  ? 


One  may  steal  a  Horse  while  another  may  not  look  over  the  Wall — that 
is,  to  get  drunk  with  Toddy  or  raw  Rum  is  a  damnable  Sin,  while  to  get 
drunk  with  Punch  &  Wine  is  hardly  a  venial  one. 

The  Vulgar  trace  your  Faults  those  you  have  in  common  with  them 
selves,  but  have  no  Idea  of  your  Excellencies  to  which  they  have  no  Pre- 
tentions. 


What  numbers  live  to  the  age  of  fifty  or  sixty,  yet  if  estimated  by  their 
merit  are  not  worth  a  chick  ? 

Every  instance  of  a  Friend's  insincerity  increases  our  dependance  on 
Money,  which  produces  external  Respect  when  we  are  disappointed  of 
that  which  is  internal  and  sincere. 

Even  in  these  degenerate  days  some  are  striving  to  make  their  (Gen. 
Election  BOSTON)  calling  and  Election  sure. 


Cunning  people  are  not  always  honest  nor  wise. 

Beauteous  Nature,  blooming  Health 
Exceeds  all  Art,  and  Pride  of  Wealth. 
Then  Ladies  chuse  the  better  part, 
Negledl  the  Head,  and  mend  the  Heart. 


The  Miser  grows  rich  by  seeming  poor.  The  Extravagant  Man  grows 
poor  by  seeming  rich. 

One  should  no  more  trust  the  skill  of  Apothecaries  than  ask  the  opin 
ion  of  their  Pestle  and  Mortar  yet  both  are  useful  in  their  way. 


422  ALMANACK   FOR    1771. 

What  some  people  term  Freedom,  is  nothing  else  than  a  liberty  of 
saying  and  doing  disagreeable  things,  carrying  the  notion  a  little  higher 
it  would  require  us  to  break  and  have  a  head  broke  without  offence. 


Men  praise  against  their  Wills,  but  slander  comes  voluntary. 

Superstition  regulates  some  of  the  illiterate  better  than  Law,  Con 
science  or  Honor,  then  is  not  the  notion  of  Astrology  more  useful  than 
present  Schools  allow.  

Great  quickness  of  parts  is  seldom  joined  with  great  solidity  and  judg 
ment — the  most  rapid  rivers  are  seldom  or  never  deep. 

A  Girl  of  sixteen  is  more  conversable  than  a  Man  of  twenty-five. 


If  any  one's  curse  can  effect  damnation,  'tis  not  that  of  the  Pope,  but 
that  of  the  poor. 

Short  visits  are  most  agreeable. 

A  mere  formal  visitor  among  Men  of  business  is  intolerable — but  when 
Men  of  genius  happen  to  meet,  their  souls  strike  fire,  and  furnish  out  a 
refined  entertainment  of  new  ideas — too  thin  a  diet  for  any  but  them 
selves—and  they  would  often  be  glad  of  one  more  solid. 


It  is  not  now  "  we  have  seen  his  Star  in  the  Bast "  but  we  have  seen 
the  "  Star  on  his  Breast,"  and  are  come  to  worship  him. 

Make  few  promises  and  punctually  perform  them,  then  you'll  soon 
need  no  bondsmen. 


Notes  on  1771. — The  title  page  has  the  usual  amount  of  poetic 
wisdom,  and  is  followed  by  a  selection  from  a  late  Eminent  writer,  "  on 
what  is  not  done  and  on  what  may  be  done  /"  an  effort  intended  to  incite 
the  people  to  emulation,  and  a  strenuous  endeavor  to  gather  the  "  Golden 
Fruits  of  a  Non-importation  Agreement" 

Franklin's  Epitaph  is  copied,  and  an  account  of  a  "  Ceremony  of  Mar 
riage  in  Bengal ;"  the  latter  carrying  a  moral  with  it. 

The  annual  poem  distributed  as  monthly  captions  to  each  page,  is  the 
Tale  of  Porsenna,  King  of  Russia,  and  his  adventure  with  the  wife  of 
Aeolus,  the  King  of  the  Winds,  and  her  family  ;  which  poem  is  continued 
through  the  succeeding  almanacks  for  1772  and  1773,  under  the  title  of 
"  Por -senna  in  pursuit  of  the  Kingdom  of  Felicity" 

The  weather  column  again  is  filled  with  patriotic  squibs  against  British 
Catchpennies,  Slavery,  Ignorance,  those  who  prefer  Madeira  to  home-made 
Cyder,  Superstition,  etc.,  etc. 

Abel  Puffer's  "  Cure  for  Rattle-Snake  bite  "  is  omitted,  as  a  superior 
panacea  for  this  purpose  was  brought  into  general  use  after  the  settlement 
and  developement  of  the  resources  of  Kentucky. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1771.  423 


PORSENNA  in  (Pursuit  of  the  Kingdom  of  Felicity.* 

In  Russia's  frozen  clime  some  ages  since, 

There  dwelt,  Historians  say,  a  worthy  Prince, 

Who  to  his  People's  good  confin'd  his  care, 

And  fix'd  the  basis  of  his  empire  there ; 

Inlarg'd  their  trade  the  lib'ral  arts  improv'd 

Made  nations  happy  and  himself  belov'd ; 

To  all  the  neighb'ring  states  a  terror  grown 

The  dear  delight  and  glory  of  his  own, 

Not  like  those  Kings  who  vainly  seek  renown 

From  country's  ruin'd  and  from  battles  won ; 

Those  mighty  Nimrods,  who  mean  laws  despise, 

Call  murder  but  a  princely  exercise, 

And  if  one  bloodless  sun  should  steal  away 

Cry  out  with  Titus,  they  have  lost  a  day. 

Far  different  praises  and  a  brighter  fame 

The  virtues  of  the  young  Porsenna  claim 

For  by  that  name  the  Russian  King  was  known, 

And  sure  a  nobler  ne'er  adorn'd  the  throne. 

In  peaceful  time  he  suffer'd  not  his  mind 

To  rust  in  sloth,  tho'  much  to  peace  inclin'd  ; 

But  active  rising  'ere  the  prime  of  day, 

Thro'  woods  and  lonely  desarts  lov'd  to  stray ; 

With  hounds  and  horns  to  wake  the  furious  bear, 

Or  rouse  the  tawny  lion  from  his  lair ; 

To  rid  the  forest  of  the  savage  brood, 

And  whet  his  courage  for  his  country's  good. 

One  day  as  he  pursu'd  the  dang'rous  sport, 

Attended  by  the  nobles  of  his  court, 

It  chanc'd  a  beast  of  more  than  common  speed, 

Sprang  from  the  brake,  and  thro'  the  desart  fled ; 

The  ardent  prince,  impetuous  as  the  wind, 

Rush'd  on  and  left  his  lagging  train  behind ; 

Fir'd  with  the  chace,  and  full  of  youthful  blood, 

O'er  plains,  and  vales,  and  woodland  wilds  he  rode, 

Missing  his  train,  he  strove  to  measure  back, 

The  road  he  came  but  cou'd  not  find  the  track, 

JThis  poem,  supposed  to  have  been  written  by  Dr.  Ames,  (no  mention 
being  made  of  the  authorship  of  the  "  monthly  verses  "  this  year)  is  con 
tinued  thro'  the  Almanacks  for  several  years  as  the  monthly  verses.  For 
convenience  of  the  reader  it  is  printed  continuously  under  this  title  with 
out  regard  to  its  position  in  the  original  Almanacks. 


424  ALMANACK   FOR    1771. 

And  now  the  gath'ring  clouds  began  to  spread 
O'er  the  deep  face  of  night  a  deeper  shade ; 
And  the  hoarse  thunder  growling  from  afar, 
With  herald  voice  proclaim'd  th'  approach  of  war; 

Silence  a  while  ensued then  by  degrees 

A  hollow  wind  came  mutt'ring  thro'  the  trees, 

The  active  lightning  ran  along  the  ground, 

The  fiery  bolts  by  fits  were  hurl'd  around, 

And  the  wide  forests  trembled  at  the  sound, 

Amazement  seiz'd  the  prince — where  cou'd  he  fly  ? 

No  guide  to  lead,  no  friendly  cottage  nigh. 

Groping  about  he  spy'd  a  distant  light, 

That  faintly  twinkled  thro'  the  gloom  of  night, 

And  his  heart  leap'd  for  joy  and  bless'd  the  welcome  light 

With  much  fatigue  and  many  dangers  pass'd, 

At  a  huge  mountain  he  arriv'd  at  last ; 

There  lighting  from  his  horse  on  hands  and  knees 

Grop'd  out  the  darksome  road  by  slow  degrees. 

Joyful  at  length  he  gain'd  the  steepy  height, 

And  found  the  rift  whence  sprang  the  friendly  light. 

While  he  the  wonders  of  the  place  survey'd, 

And  thro'  the  various  cells  at  random  stray'd, 

In  a  dark  corner  of  the  cave  he  view'd 

Somewhat  that  in  the  shape  of  woman  stood ; 

But  more  deform'd  than  dreams  can  represent 

The  midnight  hag,  or  poet's  fancy  paint. 

The  Lapland  witch,  when  she  her  broom  bestrides, 

And  scatters  storms  and  tempests  as  she  rides. 

The  prince  with  civil  words  approach'd  the  dame, 

Told  her  his  piteous  case  and  whence  he  came, 

And  'till  Aurora  should  the  shades  expell, 

Implor'd  a  lodging  in  her  friendly  cell ; 

Mortal,  whoe'er  thou  art,  the  Fiend  began, 

And  as  she  spake  a  deadly  horror  ran 

Thro'  all  his  frame ;  his  cheeks  the  blood  forsook, 

Chatter'd  his  teeth,  his  knees  together  struck ; 

Wlioe'er  thou  art  that  with  presumption  rude, 

Dar'st  on  my  sacred  privacy  intrude, 

Pardon'd,  know,  thro'  yon  wide  extended  plains, 

Great  Eolus,  the  king  of  tempests  reigns ; 

And  in  this  lofty  palace  makes  abode, 

Well  suited  to  his  state  and  worthy  of  the  God ; 

His  queen  am  I,  from  whom  the  beauteous  race 

Of  winds  arose,  sweet  fruit  of  our  embrace  : 


ALMANACK    FOR    1771.  425 

Libs,  Eurus,  Boreas,  all  the  boisterous  train, 
Then  round  the  Cave,  caine  rushing  in  amain. 

Their  boasting  talk  was  of  the  feats  th*  had  done, 
Of  trees  uprooted,  and  of  towns  o'erthrown, 
The  gaping  hag  in  fix'd  attention  stood, 

And  at  the  close  of  ev'ry  tale  cry'd good  ; 

And  where  said  she  does  little  Zephyr  stray  ? 
Know  ye,  my  sons,  your  brother's  rout  to  day? 
Ne'er  was  he  known  to  linger  thus  before, 
Scarce  had  she  spoke,  when  at  the  Cavern  door, 

Come  lightly  tripping  in  a  form  more  fair, 
Than  the  young  lovers  fond  ideas  are, 
Of  burnish'd  silver  were  his  sandals  made, 
Silver  his  busking  and  with  gems  o'erlaid ; 
His  wings  than  lillies  whiter  to  behold, 
Sprinkled  with  azure  spots  and  streak'd  with  gold ; 
Around  his  temples  with  becoming  air, 
In  wanton  ringlets  curled  his  auburn  hair ; 
Such  his  attire,  but  O !  no  pen  can  trace, 
No  words  can  show  the  beauties  of  his  face. 

Thou  vagrant,  cry'd  the  dame  in  angry  tone, 
Where  could'st  thou  loiter  thus  so  long  alone  ? 
Little  thou  carest  what  anxious  thoughts  molest, 
What  pangs  are  lab'ring  in  a  mother's  breast ; 
My  dear  mamma,  the  gentle  youth  reply'd, 
And  made  a  low  obeisance,  cease  to  chide, 
Nor  wound  me  with  your  words,  for  well  you  know 
Your  Zephyr  bears  a  part  in  all  your  woe, 

Nor  had  I  loiter'd  thus  had  I  been  free, 
But  the  fair  princess  of  felicity, 
Intreated  me  to  make  some  short  delay, 
And  ask'd  by  her,  who  cou'd  refuse  to  stay  ? 
Close  by  a  mount  with  fragrant  shrubs  o'ergrown, 
On  a  cool  mossy  couch  she  laid  her  down ; 
Her  air,  her  posture,  all  conspir'd  to  please  ; 
Her  head  upon  her  snowy  arm  at  ease, 
Reclin'd,  a  studied  carelessness  express'd  ; 
Loose  lay  her  robe,  and  naked  heav'd  her  breast, 
Eager  I  flew  to  that  delightful  place, 
And  pour'd  a  shower  of  kisses  on  her  face  : 
Now  hover'd  o'er  her  neck,  her  breast,  her  arms. 
Like  bees  o'er  flow'rs,  and  tasted  all  her  charms ; 
And  then  her  lips  and  then  her  cheeks  I  tried, 
And  fawn'd  and  wanton'd  round  on  ev'ry  side. 


426  ALMANACK  FOR  1771. 


O  Zephyr !    cry'd  the  fair,  thou  charming  boy, 
Thy  presence  only  can  create  me  joy, 
Excuse  my  weakness,  madam,  when  I  swear, 
Such  gentle  words  join'd  with  so  soft  an  air, 
Pronounc'd  so  sweetly  from  a  mouth  so  fair, 
Quite  ravished  all  my  sense,  nor  did  I  know 
How  long  I  staid,  or  when  or  where  to  go. 

Mean  while  her  damsels  debonnair  and  gay, 
Prattled  around,  and  laugh'd  the  time  away ; 
These  in  soft  notes  address'd  the  ravish'd  ear, 
And  warbled  out  so  sweet,  'twas  heaven  to  hear; 
And  those  in  rings  beneath  the  greenwood  shade, 
Danc'd  to  the  melody  their  fellows  made. 
Porsenna  like  a  statue  fix'd  appear'd, 
And,  wrapped  in  silent  wonder,  gaz'd  and  heard  : 
Much  he  admir'd  the  speech,  the  speaker  more 
And  dwelt  on  every  word,  and  griev'd  to  find  it  o'er  : 
O,  gentle  youth,  he  cry'd,  proceed  to  tell 
In  what  fair  country  does  this  Princess  dwell : 
To  whom  the  winged  god  with  gracious  look, 
Numberless  sweets  diffusing  while  he  spoke, 
Thus  answered  kind — These  happy  gardens  lie 
Far  hence  remov'd,  beneath  a  milder  sky, 
Their  name — the  kingdom  of  felicity. 
Sweet  scenes  of  endless  bliss,  enchanted  ground, 
A  soil  forever  sought  but  never  found, 
Tho'  in  the  search  all  human  kind  in  vain 
Weary  their  wits,  and  waste  their  lives  in  pain. 
In  different  parties,  diff'rent  paths  they  tread, 
As  reason  guides  them,  or  as  follies  lead ; 
These  wrangling  for  the  place  they  ne'er  shall  see, 
Debating  these,  if  such  a  place  there  be ; 
But  not  the  wisest,  nor  the  best  can  say 
Where  lies  the  point,  or  mark  the  certain  way. 
Some  few  by  fortune  favour'd  for  her  sport 
Have  sail'd  in  sight  of  this  delightful  port ; 
In  thought  already  seiz'd  the  blest  abodes, 
And  in  their  fond  delirium  rank'd  with  gods. 
Fruitless  attempt !  all  avenues  are  kept 
By  dreadful  foes,  sentry  that  never  slept. 
Here  fell  detraction  darts  her  pois'nous  breath 
Fraught  with  a  thousand  stings  and  scatters  death  ; 
But  say,  young  monarch,  for  what  name  you  bear 
Your  mein,  your  dress,  your  person,  all  declare ; 


ALMANACK   FOR    1771.  427 

Say,  would  you  choose  to  visit  this  retreat, 

And  view  the  world  where  all  these  wonders  meet  ? 

Wish  you  some  friend  o'er  that  tempestuous  sea 

To  bear  you  safe?  behold  that  friend  in  me. 

There  perfect  bliss  thou  may'st  forever  share 

'Scap'd  from  the  busy  world  and  all  its  care  ; 

There  in  the  lovely  Princess  thou  shalt  find 

A  mistress  ever  blooming,  ever  kind. 

All  ecstasy  on  air  Por senna  trod, 

And  to  his  bosom  strain'd  the  little  god  ; 

With  grateful  sentiments  his  heart  o'erflow'd, 

And  in  the  warmest  words  millions  of  thanks  bestow'd. 

When  ^olus  in  surly  humour  broke 

Their  strict  embrace,  and  thus  abruptly  spoke, 

Enough  of  compliment ;   I  hate  the  sport 

Of  meanless  words  ;  this  is  no  human  court ; 

Where  plain  and  honest  are  discarded  quite, 

For  the  more  modish  title  of  polite. 

Where  in  soft  speeches  hypocrites  impart, 

The  venom'd  ills  that  lurk  beneath  the  heart ; 

In  friendship's  holy  guise  their  guilt  improve, 

And  kindly  kill  with  specious  shews  of  love. 

For  us, — my  subjects  are  not  us'd  to  wait 

And  waste  their  hours  to  hear  a  mortal  prate. 

Excuse  my  plainness,  Sir,  but  business  stands, 

And  we  have  storms  and  shipwrecks  on  our  hands, 

He  ended  frowning,  and  the  noisy  rout, 

Each  to  his  several  cell  went  puffing  out. 

But  Zephyr  far  more  courteous  than  the  rest, 

To  his  own  bow'r  convey'd  the  royal  guest ; 

There  on  a  bed  of  roses  neatly  laid, 

Beneath  the  fragrance  of  the  myrtle  shade, 

His  limbs  to  needful  rest  the  prince  applied 

His  sweet  companion  slumbering  bv  his  side. 

No  sooner  in  her  silver  chariot  rose 

The  ruddy  morn,  then  sated  with  repose 

The  prince  address'd  his  host,  the  god  awoke, 

And  leaping  from  his  couch  thus  kindly  spoke, 
"  Like  you  I  long  to  reach  the  blissful  coast, 
"  Hate  the  slow  night,  and  mourn  the  moments  lost. 
"  The  bright  Prosinda,  loveliest  of  the  fair 
"  That  crowd  the  princess'  court,  demands  my  care  ; 
"  What  sweet  rewards  on  all  my  toils  attend, 
"  Serving  at  once  my  mistress  and  my  friend, 


428  ALMANACK  FOR  1771 


"  Just  to  my  love  and  to  my  duty  too, 
"  Well  paid  in  her,  well  pleas'd  in  pleasing  you." 
This  said,  he  led  Porsenna  to  the  gate, 
And  clasp'd  him  in  his  arms  and  pois'd  his  weight ; 
Then  ballancing  his  body  here  and  there, 
Stretch'd  forth  his  agile  wings  and  launch'd  in  air : 
Swift  as  the  fiery  meteor  from  on  high 
Shoots  to  its  goal  and  gleams  athwart  the  sky 
Here  with  quick  fan  his  lab'ring  pinions  play ; 
There  glide  at  ease  along  the  liquid  way. 
The  friendly  God,  who  instantly  divin'd 
The  terrors  that  possess'd  his  fellows  mind 
To  calm  his  troubl'd  thoughts  and  chear  the  way, 
Discrib'd  the  nations  that  beneath  them  lay. 
The  sweet  discourse  so  charm'd  Porsenna's  ear 
That  lost  in  joy  he  had  no  time  for  fear, 
From  Scandinavia's  cold  inclement  waste 
O'er  wide  Germania's  various  relms  they  past, 
And  now  on  Albion's  fields  suspend  their  toil, 
And  hover  for  a  while,  and  bless  the  soil. 
Dwells  chearful  plenty  there,  and  learned  ease, 
And  art  with  Nature  seems  at  strife  to  please : 
Their  Liberty,  delightful  Goddess,  reigns, 
Gladdens  each  heart,  and  gilds  the  fertile  plains, 
Streaching  their  course  to  climates  then  unknown, 
Nations  that  swelter  in  the  burning  zone. 
There  in  Peruvian  vales  a  moment  staid, 
And  smooth'd  his  wings  beneath  the  citron  shade : 
Then  swift  his  oary  pinions  ply'd  again, 
Cross'd  the  new  world  and  sought  the  southern  main 
Where  many  a  wet  and  weary  league  o'er  past, 
The  wish'd  for  paradise  appear'd  at  last. 
With  force  abated  now  they  gently  sweep 
O'er  the  smooth  surface  of  the  shining  deep : 
The  Dryads  hail'd  them  from  the  distant  shore, 
The  Nereids  play'd  round,  the  Tritons  swam  before, 
Nor  pale  disease  nor  health  consuming  care, 
Nor  wrath  nor  foul  revenge,  can  enter  there. 
What  e'er  the  sweet  Sabaean  soil  can  boast, 
Or  Mecca's  plains,  or  India's  spicy  coast ; 
What  Hybla's  hills,  or  rich  Oebalia's  fields, 
Or  flowing  vale  of  fam'd  Hymettus  yields  : 
Or  what  of  old  th'  Hesperian  orchard  grac'd, 
All  that  was  e'er  delicious  to  the  taste. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1771.  429 


Sweet  to  the  smell,  or  lovely  to  the  view, 

Collected  there  with  added  beauty  grew : 

And  on  each  bough  the  feather'd  choir  employ 

Their  melting  notes,  and  naught  is  heard  but  joy : 

The  painted  flowers  exhale  a  rich  perfume, 

The  fruits  are  mingled  with  eternal  bloom. 

And  spring  and  autumn  hand  in  hand  appear, 

L/ead  on  the  merry  months  and  join  to  cloath  the  year. 

And  now  descending  from  his  flight,  the  God 

On  the  green  turf  releas'd  his  precious  load  : 

Zephyr,  impatient  to  behold  his  love, 

The  prince  in  raptures  wand 'ring  thro'  the  grove. 

Now  skipping  on,  and  singing  as  he  went, 

Now  stopping  short  to  give  his  transports  vent. 

Close  by  the  borders  of  a  rising  wood, 

In  a  green  vale  a  chrystal  grotto  stood, 

And  o'er  its  side,  beneath  a  beechen  shade, 

In  broken  falls  a  silver  fountain  play'd : 

Hither,  attracted  by  the  murm'ring  stream, 

And  cool  recess,  the  pleas'd  Porsenna  came  : 

The  warb'ling  birds,  and  rills  that  gently  creep, 

All  join  their  musick,  to  invite  his  sleep. 

The  princess  for  her  morning  walk  prepar'd, 

The  female  troops  attend,  a  beauteous  guard. 

Array'd  in  all  her  charms  appear'd  the  fair, 

Tall  was  her  stature,  unconfin'd  her  hair. 

No  foreign  aids,  by  mortal  ladies  worn, 

From  shells  and  rocks  her  artless  charms  adorn ; 

For  grant  that  beauty  were  by  gems  increas'd, 

'Tis  rendered  more  suspected  at  the  least. 

Her  chesnut  hair  in  careless  rings  around 

Her  temples  wav'd,  with  pinks  and  jes'mine  crown'd. 

The.  damsels  of  her  train  wTith  mirth  and  song 

Frolick  behind,  and  laugh  and  sport  along: 

The  birds  proclaim  their  queen  from  ev'ry  tree, 

The  beasts  run  frisking  thro'  the  groves  to  see. 

By  what  e'er  fancy  led,  it  chanc'd  that  day 

They  thro'  the  secret  valley  took  their  way 

And  to  the  crystal  grott  advancing  spi'd 

The  Prince  extended  by  the  fountain  side : 

He  look'd  as  by  some  skilful  hand  express'd 

Apollo's  youthful  form  retir'd  to  rest ; 

Waking  he  started  from  the  ground  in  haste 

And  saw  the  beauteous  choir  around  him  plac'd : 


430  ALMANACK  FOR  1771. 

Then  summoning  his  senses  ran  to  meet 
The  queen,  and  laid  him  humbly  at  her  feet. 
"  Deign  lovely  princess  to  behold,"  said  he, 
"  One  who  has  travers'd  all  the  world  to  see 
"  Those  charms,  and  worship  thy  divinity. 
"  Accept  thy  slave,  and  with  a  gracious  smile, 
"  Excuse  his  rashness,  and  reward  his  toil." 
Stood  motionless  the  fair,  with  mute  surprize, 
And  read  him  over  with  admiring  eyes : 
And  while  she  stedfast  gaz'd,  a  pleasing  smart 
Ran  thrilling  thro'  her  veins  and  reach'd  her  heart, 
Bach  limb  she  scan'd,  consider'd  ev'ry  grace, 
And  sagely  judg'd  him  of  the  Phoenix  race. 
An  animal  like  this  she  ne'er  had  known, 
And  thence  concluded  there  could  be  but  one. 
"  O,  handsome  Phoenix,  for  that  such  you  are 
"  We  know  your  beauty  does  your  breed  declare. 
"  For  Nature  form'd  you  single  and  alone 
"  Alas  !  what  pity  'tis  there  is  but  one  ! 
"  Were  there  a  queen  so  fortunate  to  shew 
"  An  aviary  of  charming  birds  like  you. 
"  What  envy  would  her  happiness  create 
"  In  all  who  saw  the  glories  of  her  state !  " 
The  prince  laugh'd  inwardly  surpriz'd  to  find 
So  strange  a  speech,  so  innocent  a  mind. 
The  compliment  indeed  did  some  offence 
To  reason,  and  a  little  wrong'd  her  sense. 
But  she'd  a  piercing  wit,  of  wond'rous  reach 
To  comprehend  whatever  he  could  teach. 
Thus  hand  in  hand  they  to  the  palace  walk 
Pleas'd  and  instructed  with  each  other's  talk. 
Here,  should  I  tell  the  furniture's  expence, 
And  all  the  structure's  vast  magnificence, 
Describe  the  walls  of  shining  sapphire  made 
With  emerald  and  pearl,  the  walls  unlaid, 
And  how  the  vaulted  canopies  unfold. 
A  mimic  heav'n  and  flames  with  gems  of  gold : 
Or  how  Felicity  regales  her  guest, 
The  wit,  the  mirth,  the  musick,  and  the  feast, 
And  on  each  part  bestow  the  praises  due, 
'  Twould  tire  the  writer,  and  the  reader  too. 
Alas  !  how  vain  is  happiness  below  ! 
Man  soon  or  late  must  have  his  share  of  woe : 
Slight  are  his  joys  and  fleeting  as  the  wind, 
His  griefs  wound  home,  and  leave  a  sting  behind. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1771.  431 

His  lot  distiuguish'd  from  the  brute  appears 
Less  certain  by  his  laughter  than  his  tears : 
For  ignorance  too  oft  our  pleasure  breeds, 
But  sorrow  from  the  reas'ning  soul  proceeds : 
If  man  on  Earth  in  endless  bliss  could  be, 
The  boon,  young  prince,  had  been  bestow'd  on  thee. 
Bright  shone  thy  stars,  thy  Fortune  flourished  fair, 
And  seem'd  secure  beyond  the  reach  of  care, 
And  so  might  still  have  been,  but  anxious  thought 
Has  dash'd  thy  cup,  and  thou  must  taste  the  draught. 
It  so  befel,  as  on  a  certain  day 
This  happy  happy  couple  toy'd  their  time  away, 
He  asked  how  many  charming  hours  were  flown 
Since  on  her  slave  her  heav'n  of  beauty  shone,  " 
"  Should  I  consult  my  heart,"  cried  he,  "  the  wait 
"  Were  small,  a  week  would  be  the  utmost  date, 
"  But  when  my  mind  reflects  on  actions  past 
"  And  counts  its  joys,  time  must  have  fled  more  fast. 
"  Perhaps  I  might  have  said  three  months  are  gone, 
"  Three  months  !  "  replied  the  fair,  "  three  months  alone ! 
"  Know  that  three  hundred  years  have  rolled  away 
"  Since  at  my  feet  the  lovely  Phoenix  lay." 
"  Three  hundred  years,"  re-echoed  back  the  prince, 
"  A  whole  three  hundred  years  compleated  since 
"  I  landed  here  !     O  !  whither  then  are  flown 
"  My  dearest  friends,  my  subjects  and  my  throne? 
"  My  crown  perhaps  may  grace  a  foreign  line 
"  A  race  of  kings  that  know  not  me  nor  mine. 
"  Who  reigns  may  wish  my  death,  his  subjects  treat 
"  My  claim  with  scorn,  and  call  their  prince  a  cheat. 
"  Oh,  had  my  life  been  ended  as  begun  ! 
"  My  destin'd  stage,  my  race  of  glory  run, 
"  I  should  have  died  well  pleas'd,  my  honor'd  name 
"  Had  liv'd,  had  flourish'd  in  the  list  of  fame, 
"  Reflecting  now  my  mind  with  horror  sees 
"  The  sad  survey,  a  scene  of  shameful  ease." 
The  fair  beheld  him  with  impatient  eye, 
And  red  with  anger  made  this  warm  reply, 
"  Ungrateful  Man  !  is  this  the  kind  return 
"  My  love  deserves  ;  and  can  you  thus  with  scorn 
"  Reject  what  once  you  priz'd,  what  once  you  swore 
"  Surpass'd  all  charms  and  made  e'en  glory  poor  ? 
"  What  gifts  have  I  bestow'd,  what  favors  shown ! 
"  Made  you  partaker  of  my  bed  and  throne ; 


432  ALMANACK  FOR  1771. 


"  Three  centuries  preserved  in  youthful  prime, 
"  Safe  from  the  rage  of  death,  and  iujuries  of  time." 
Weak  arguments  !  for  glory  reigns  above, 
The  feeble  ties  of  gratitude  and  love. 
"  I  urge  them  not,  nor  would  request  your  stay ; 
"  The  phantom  glory  calls,  and  I  obey : 
"  Go,  tell  the  world  your  tender  heart  could  give 
"  Death  to  the  princess,  by  whose  care  you  live." 
At  this  a  deadly  pale  her  cheeks  o'er  spread, 
Cold  trembling  seized  her  limbs,  her  spirits  fled, 
She  sunk  into  his  arms ;  the  Prince  was  mov'd, 
Felt  all  her  griefs,  for  still  he  greatly  lov'd ; 
He  sigh'd,  he  wish'd  he  could  forget  his  throne, 
Confine  his  thoughts,  and  live  for  her  alone ; 
But  glory  shot  him  deep,  the  venom'd  dart 
Was  fixed  within  and  rankled  at  his  heart. 
An  age  no  longer  like  a  month  appears, 
But  every  month  becomes  an  hundred  years. 
Felicity  was  grieved  and  could  not  bear 
A  scene  so  chang'd,  a  sight  of  so  much  care ; 
She  told  him  with  a  look  of  cold  disdain, 
And  seeming  ease  as  women  well  can  feign ; 
He  might  depart  at  will ;  a  milder  air 
Would  mend  his  health  ;  he  was  no  pris'ner  there ; 
She  kept  him  not,  and  wished  him  ne'er  might  find 
Cause  to  regret  the  place  he  left  behind. 
If  these  prophetic  words  a  while  destroy 
His  peace,  the  former  ballanc'd  it  in  joy. 
He  thanked  her  for  her  kind  concern,  but  chose 
To  quit  the  place,  the  rest  let  heaven  dispose  ; 
For  fate  on  mischief  bent,  perverts  the  will, 
And  first  infatuates  whom  it  means  to  kill. 
Aurora  now,  not  as  she  was  wont  to  rise, 
In  gay  attire,  ting'd  with  a  thousand  dies; 
But  sober  sad  in  solemn  state  appears, 
Clad  in  a  dusky  veil  bedewed  with  tears ; 
Some  black  event  tlfe  threat'ning  skies  foretel, 
Porsenna  rose  to  take  his  last  farewell ; 
A  curious  vest  the  mournful  Princess  brought, 
And  armour  by  the  Lemnian  artist  wrought. 
A  shining  lance  with  the  secret  Virtue  stor'd 
And  of  resistless  force  a  magic  Sword, 
Caparisons  and  gems  of  wond'rous  price, 
And  loaded  him  with  gifts  and  good  advice. 


ALMANACK   FOR    1771.  433 


But  chief  she  gave,  and  what  he  most  would  need : 
The  fleetest  of  her  stud,  a  flying  steed 
"  The  swift  Grissippo,"  said  th'  afflicted  fair, 

(Such  was  the  Courser's  name)  "  with  speed  shall  bear  " 
"  And  place  you  Safely  in  your  native  air 
"  Assist  against  the  foe  with  matchless  might 
"  Ravage  the  field,  and  turn  the  doubtful  fight 
"  But  this  I  warn,  beware  ;  what  e'er  shall  lay 
"  To  intercept  your  course,  or  tempt  your  stay, 
"  Quit  not  your  saddle,  nor  your  speed  abate, 
"  Till  safely  landed  at  your  palace  gate, 
"  On  this  alone  depends  your  weal  or  woe  ; 
"  Such  is  the  will  of  Fate,  and  so  the  Gods  foreshow. 
He  mounts  and  sighing  took  a  kind  adieu, 
Then  urg'd  his  steed,  though  fierce  Grissippo  flew 
With  rapid  force  outstript  the  lagging  wind 
And  left  the  blissful  shores,  and  weeping  fair  behind. 
Thus  driving  on  at  speed  the  prince  had  run 
Near  half  his  course,  when  with  the  setting  sun 
As  through  a  lonely  lane  he  chanc'd  to  ride 
With  rocks  and  bushes  fenc'd  on  either  side, 
He  spied  a  waggon  full  of  wings  that  lay 
Broke  and  o'erturn'd  across  the  narrow  way, 
The  helpless  driver  on  the  dirty  road 
Lay  struggling,  crush'd  'neath  th'  incumbent  load, 
Never  in  human  shape  was  seen  before 
A  wight  so  pale,  so  feeble,  and  so  poor. 
Comparisons  of  age  would  do  him  wrong 
For  Nestor's  self  if  plac'd  by  him  were  young : 
His  limbs  were  naked  all,  and  worn  so  thin, 
The  bones  seem'd  starting  ihro'  the  parchment  skin. 
The  conscious  steed  stopped  short  in  deadly  fright, 
And  back  recoiling  stretch'd  his  wings  for  flight. 
When  thus  the  wretch  with  supplicating  tone, 
And  rueful  face  began  his  piteous  moan, 
"  O  gentle  youth,  if  pity  e'er  inclin'd 
"  Thy  soul  to  generous  deeds,  if  e'er  thy  mind 
"  Was  touch'd  with  soft  distress,  extend  thy  care 
"  To  save  an  old  man's  life,  and  ease  the  load  I  bear 
"  So  may  propitious  Heaven  your  journey  speed, 
"  Prolong  your  days,  and  all  your  vows  succeed. 
Mov'd  with  the  pray'r  the  kind  Porsenna  staid, 
Too  nobly  minded  to  refuse  his  aid, 
And  prudence  yielding  to  superior  grief, 
Leap'd  from  his  steed,  and  ran  to  his  relief: 


434 


ALMANACK  FOR  1771. 


Remov'd  the  weight,  and  gave  his  pris'ner  breath 
Just  chok'd,  and  gasping  on  the  verge  of  death. 
Then  reach'd  his  hand,  when  lightly  with  a  bound 
The  grizly  spectre  vaulting  from  the  ground 
Seiz'd  him  with  sudden  gripe,  th'  astonish'd  prince 
Stood  horror  struck  and  thoughtless  of  defence. 
'  O,  King  of  Russia,"  with  a  thund'ring  sound 
Bellow'd  the  gastly  fiend,  "  at  length  thou'rt  found  " 
'  Receive  the  Ruler  of  Mankind,  and  know, 
'  My  name  is  TIME  thy  ever  dreaded  foe 
'  These  feet  are  founder'd  and  the  wings  you  see 
1  Worn  to  the  pinions  in  pursuit  of  thee, 
'  Through  all  the  world  in  vain  for  ages  sought, 
'  But  fate  has  dooin'd  thee  now,  and  thou  art  caught." 
Then  round  his  neck  his  arms  he  nimbly  cast 
And  seiz'd  him  by  the  throat  and  grasp'd  him  fast, 
'Till  forc'd  at  length  his  soul  forsook  its  seat, 
And  the  pale  breathless  corse  fell  bleeding  at  his  feet 
Now  since  that  day  (the  wretched  world  must  own 
This  mournful  Truth  by  sad  experience  known) 
No  mortal  since  enjoy'd  that  happy  clime, 
And  ev'ry  thing  on  earth  submits  to  TIME. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1772. 


435 


Aa  ASTRONOMICAL  DIART  ;    or 

A  L  M  A  N  AC  K 

For  the  Ttar  of  cur  JW  CHRIST  1772  ;  b«mg  £i/exti!e  or 
'*>.  Calculated  for  the  Meridian  of  BOSTON, 
Lat.  42-25,.Norih. 


Bcfides  what  is  ufual  in  Altnanioks,  a 
Defcrjprion  of  the  Dwarf  that  lately  made  her  Appearance 
in  BotTOiri  s$alfoa  eurious  Method  &£  taking  Wax 
and  Honef,  without  deflroymg  Bees, 


By  Nathaniel   Ames. 


PrU»  s     8t/. 


per 


436  ALMANACK  FOR  1772. 

The  following  short  Description  of  the  extraordinary  Person  who 
lately  made  her  appearance  in  this  town,  may  not  be  disagree 
able  to  our  Readers,  although  it  may  not  be  so  particular,  as  the 
curious  ivould  desire,  as  she  would  not  admit  of  an  accurate 
examination. 

Miss  Emma  Leach  was  born  in  Beverly,  about  20  Miles 
distant  from  this  town,  in  the  year  1719.  She  was  at  her  birth 
as  well  a  shaped  child  as  any  of  ten  which  the  same  mother  bore. 
— Her  friends  early  discovered  her  bones  to  be  in  a  flexible  state, 
and  unable  to  resist  the  action  of  the  muscles,  which  made  it 
very  difficult  to  support  her  in  any  other  than  a  horizontal  posi 
tion.  After  two  years  the  bones  acquired  some  considerable 
degree  of  firmness ;  but  they  had  been  so  long  inflected  by  the 
action  of  the  muscles,  that  they  never  recovered  their  proper 
figure  or  situation.  She  measured  in  a  right  line  from  the  crown 
of  the  head  to  the  feet,  twenty-two  inches.  The  head  was  as 
large  as  is  usual  for  persons  of  a  common  stature,  and  not  at  all 
deformed.  The  vertebrae  of  the  back  were  somewhat  elevated. 
The  sternum  was  almost  in  a  line  parallel  with  the  chin,  the  ribs 
formed  with  the  sternum  a  monstrous  protuberance  before :  the 
thigh  bones  were  prodigiously  incurvated,  forming  from  their 
junctures  more  than  a  semicircle ;  had  they  been  straight,  they 
might  have  equalled  in  length  the  bones  of  a  child  seven  or  eight 
years  old.  The  bones  of  the  legs  also  were  crooked,  but  not  so 
much  as  those  of  the  thighs,  and  were  so  much  flattened  that  the 
tibia  was  quite  acute  on  the  anterior  part.  Her  feet  were  about 
the  size  of  a  child  of  five  or  six  years  old,  and  not  at  all  deformed. 
She  could  never  walk,  but  was  either  carried  by  her  friends  or 
moved  herself  about  with  the  assistance  of  a  small  chair  and 
stick.  She  enjoyed  a  tolerable  share  of  health,  free  from  most 
complaints  excepting  indigestion,  in  consequence  of  which  she 
was  sometimes  troubled  with  hysteric  and  epileptic  fits.  In  her 
conversation  she  discovers  a  vivacity  which  very  much  surprizes 
all  who  have  the  pleasure  of  being  acquainted  with  her.  She 
now  enjoys  herself  very  agreeably  at  her  native  place. 


more  full  and  accurate  Description  of  this  little  facetious  person, 
with  a  physical  dissertation  thereon,  together  with  an  account  of  a  number 
of  remarkable  small  persons  who  have  made  their  appearance  in  different 
parts  of  Europe,  is  published  by  EzEKiEi,  RUSSEU,,  at  his  Printing  Office 
in  Marlborough  Street.  (Price  4d.) 


ALMANACK  FOR  1772. 


437 


THE   PATRIOTIC  AMERICAN  FARMER, 
D-'K'-NS-^N.  Esoj  BAJLRIITB*.  at    LAW. 


wftk  Afttte  titoqqtfnce,  and  Rorosm  Spirit,  hath  af-; 
e  Liberties  ot  the  ButTi^a  Coldnles  in 


nobly  dofte  to  Stem  Taxations  Rage, 
Varfe  ffie  :-TKfltt^Vtt  of  $  itfg«rifr*te  Ag«, 

for  Happincfi  and  Joy,  froor  freedom'  fpriog  ; 

Btit 


DICKINSON  (JOHN),  an  American  statesman  and  lawyer,  born  in  Mary 
land  in  1732.  He  was  chosen  a  member  of  the  Continental  Congress  in 
1774,  and  wrote  several  important  state  papers  issued  by  that  body.  In 


438 


ALMANACK  FOR  1772. 


June,  1776,  he  opposed  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  which  he  thought 
premature.  Having  declined  to  sign  that  declaration,  he  impaired  his 
popularity,  and  lost  his  election  to  the  next  Congress.  He  afterwards 
served  as  a  private  soldier  against  the  British.  In  1779  he  was  again 
elected  to  Congress  from  Delaware.  He  was  President  of  Pennsylvania 
about  three  years,  1782-85.  He  was  an  able  debater,  and  distinguished  for 
his  elegant  manners  and  superior  culture.  Died  in  1808. — [Lippincotfs 
Biog.  Dictionary^ 


Mrs.  CATHARINE' 

Macauley  (Catharine,)  an  English  authoress,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Sawbridge,  was  born  in  Kent,  in  1733.  She  was  married  to  Dr.  George 
Macauley,  of  London,  about  1760,  and  published  a  "History  of  England 
from  the  Accession  of  James  I  to  the  Elevation  of  the  House  of  Hanover," 
(1763)  which  is  favorable  to  republicanism.  In  1785  she  visited  Washing 
ton  at  Mount  Vernon.  She  wrote  several  political  treatises.  "  Her 
history,"  says  T.  B.  Macauley,  "  is  more  distinguished  by  zeal  than  either 
by  candor  or  skill." — Lippincot?  s  Biog.  Dictionary. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1772.  439 

BENEVOLENT  READER, 

The  harmony  and  union  which,  in  my  Father's  day  subsisted 
among  the  Gentlemen  of  the  TYPE,  being  now  unhappily 
destroyed,  renders  it  necessary  for  me  to  delay  the  publication  of 
my  Almanack  'till  such  a  time  as  Almanacks  are  in  greatest 
demand,  that  the  original  Purchaser  of  the  copy  may  have  the 
utmost  advantage  of  a  quick  sale  to  save  enough  to  pay  for  the 
copy  in  the  few  days  start  he  has  of  the  other  Printers.  The  kind 
receptance  which  you  are  pleased  to  afford  my  annual  publica 
tions,  cherishes  in  me  an  irresistable  ardour  to  serve  you,  accord 
ing  to  the  best  of  my  capacity,  and  for  this  end  I  earnestly 
entreat  all  persons  that  know  of  any  errors  or  defects  in  the 
account  of  the  Stages,  or  alterations  in,  or  new  establishment  of 
Courts  in  either  of  the  four  New-England  governments,  and 
according  to  desire,  the  Courts  in  either  of  the  provinces  of 
New-York  and  Nova-Scotia,  or  governments  of  Canada,  New 
foundland  and  St.  Johns,  to  send  me  correct  accounts  thereof,  and 
they  may  depend  on  the  favors  being  most  gratefully  acknowl 
edged,  by  their  most  humble  Servant, 

NAT.  AMES. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

The  moment  a  man  emerges  from  minority  he  is  upon  a  level  with  all 
mankind. 

Policy  makes  it  a  point  to  dazzle  in  order  to  enslave,  but  the  rod  of 
Justice  will  overtake  even  KINGS  ! 

Jan'y  30.     K.  Charles  I.  beheaded. 


For  pleasure,  see  the  gay 

Expose  themselves  at  leisure  in  the  Sley 

'Till  almost  froze ! 

Neither  kill  a  fly,  nor  beat  a  dog,  without  a  reason  sufficient  to  vindi 
cate  it  thro'  all  the  courts  of  Morality. 


Old  stile  says  'tis  Winter  yet,  which  we  may  now  believe,  seeing  the 
planets,  like  the  great  ones  here  below,  can't  agree  whether  we  shall  con 
tinue  under  the  grievance  of  Winter  or  enjoy  the  season's  birthright, 
blooming  spring. 

There  will  yet  be  Snow  !   Where  this  page  shall  go. 


440  ALMANACK  FOR  1772. 

Let  servants  dress  fine  that  elegance  may  more  strongly  distinguish  the 
gentleman. 

Before  you  become  intimate  consider  that  familiarity  destroys  respect 
but  increases  L,ove. 

See  politicians  of  all  conditions  Ministerial  faults  can  trace, 
Yet  from  a  Counsellor  to  a  Corporal  they  are  emulous  of  place. 
May  i6th.     TRYON'S  glorious —    — ! ! ! 

Most  people  mistake  the  means  for  the  end,  as  riches  for  happiness, 
learning  for  sense,  &c. 

Spleen  is  often  little  else  than  an  obstructed  Perspiration. 
There  are  not  five  in  five  thousand  that   pity,  but  at  the  same   time 
despise,  so  be  cautious  where  and  to  whom  you  complain. 

Great  sprightliness  in  children  is  no  sign  of  future  sense  and  judgment. 


It  is  a  good  way  to  gain  esteem  to  wave  some  advantages  you  have  a 
just  claim  to,  as  men  of  quality  never  appear  more  amiable  than  when 
their  dress  is  plain. 

Taste,  elegance  and  refinement  distinguish  the  poor  gentleman  from 
the  rich  Vulgar ;  but  are  poor  estate  in  the  eyes  of  the  world  in  general. 


The  Golden  Age  was  never  the  present — that  is,  our  grandfathers  say  it 
was  better  times  when  they  were  young — their's  said  the  same. 

Self  Interest  will  reconcile  enemies,  and  some  like  their  master  below 
might  say,  "  We  have  embraced  and  have  cherished  a  mortal  hatred  toward 
each  other  ever  since,  and  assumed  the  mask  of  friendship  to  wound  the 
deeper.'' 

It  will  do  to  laugh  men  out  of  their  follies,  but  not  drive  them,  for  you 
cannot  make  an  ass  into  an  elephant. 

It  is  happy  enough  that  the  same  vices  which  impair  our  fortunes  fre 
quently  ruin  our  constitutions,  that  one  may  not  survive  the  other. 


See  !  nightly  battles  fought  in  air, 

See  !  royal  Honor  full  of  fears. 

Now  my  brave  countrymen  prepare  for  dire  approaching  civil  wars ! 
The  proverb  ought  to  run  "  a  fool  and  his  words  are  soon  parted,  a  man 
of  genius  and  his  money." 

To  burn  the  Pope,  is  now  a  joke,  for  a  design  he  miss't  on,  to  sap  that 
mansion  which  dares  pension  your  famous  Butcher  Preston  ! 

Men  are  sometimes  accused  of  pride  merely  because  their  accusers 
would  be  proud  themselves  if  they  were  in  their  places. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1772.  441 

Now  virgin  Aunts  void  of  gallants 

Envy  lads  and  lasses 
Whose  winter's  night  in  gay  delight 

Innocently  passes. 

Chearly  Christians  fill  to  Bacchus, 

He  will  guard  from  nipping  cold, 
Wine  will  warm  us,  Love  will  wreck  us 

Venus  now  is  turn'd  a  scold. 


I772» — We  note  our  approach  to  modern  times  and  tastes 
in  this  year's  production ;  and  the  desire  for  the  monstrous  and  extra 
ordinary  is  pandered  to  by  the  author  in  his  description  of  the  Beverly 
dwarf,  Miss  Emma  Leach;  though  he  deprecatingly  announces  "  it  may 
not  be  so  particular  as  the  curious  would  desire,  as  she  would  not  admit 
of  an  accurate  examination."  A  frightful  wood  cut  illustrates  the  descrip 
tion,  and  is  quite  the  equal  of  any  modern  horror.  The  "  unhappiness  " 
among  the  printers  calls  forth  an  explanatory  card  from  Doctor  Ames, 
which  recounts  circumstances  endorsing  the  extreme  popularity  of  his 
annual  publication.  Mr.  John  Dickinson,  Barrister-at-Law,  "  The  Patri 
otic  American  Farmer"  is  basely  slandered  by  an  outrageous  portrait  in 
this  issue,  and  Mrs.  Catherine  McCaulay,  is  similarly  disposed  of  by  some 
barbarous  engraver ;  yet  the  almanack  itself  gives  no  reason  for  the  sacri 
fice. 

The  "jester's  cap  and  bells  "  are  both  profitably  seen  and  heard  through 
the  pages  of  the  prognostications.  Trite  allusions  are  made  to  Pity,  the 
Golden  Age,  Self-interest,  and  the  impending  Civil  War,  with  a  dig  at 
Parliament  (under  November)  for  pensioning  the  heroic  (?)  commander  of 
the  detachment  of  British  troops  who  perpetrated  the  "  Boston  Massacre" 


442 


ALMANACK  FOR  1773. 


An  attronomical  Diarp  :   Or,  An 


For  the  Year   o-f  our  L  0  R  D, 

1773 

BeFng  the  firft Year  after  Biflextile 

Or  Leap  Year, 
.Calculated  for   the  Meridian  o) 

BOSTON,     NEW- ENGLAND 
Lat.  42  Deg     2£Mm.  North 

Containing  bcfides  what  is  common 

in  Almanacks. —  A  Method  of 

Planting  Vineyards.   —  How  i 

Nation,    may     be  ruined    and 

reformed,  &c.&c. 


OQQOQQOQQQOOOQOOQQOQOQQQOQ 


OUR   great   Forefathers,  fir'd  with  virtuousRage, 
Did   all   the    Perils  of  the  Deep  engage, 
To   fly   thofe   Realms  where   proud   tyrannic  Sway, 
And   horrid   P      Vcution    fcout^for  Prey   ; 
Theif  natiye  Soil  and  youthful  Scenes   they  fled, 
Where  bounteous  Nature  ail   her  .Blefimgs  fhed, 
And   fifler  Art    had   ranfack'd  foreign    Shores, 
Made  every  Dainty  croud    their  Britifh   Stores, 
Had   rais'd  the  ample  Dome    an4'  lofty. Spire, 
And  fpacious  Theatre,    were  Crouds  Admire 
The   mighty  Feats  perform'4  in   ancient  Days, 
That    fpring   to  Life,    revived    in  Englifli    Plays. 
Thefe  Pleafures  ail,  our.  Fathers  left  behind, 
But  bro'r.  the  Seeds   of  Science  in  their  Mind, 
Here  planted   firft   fair  Freedom  with  Applaufe, 
Which  gives  the   Relifli  to  all  other  Joys  : 
Guard    then  the  Plane,— this  favage  Land    adorn, 
This  Work'  .they  left  their  Children    thei    unborn. 

&<OQ^a£(3£(93<3G>©3€X^ 


S  O  S  T  0  N :  Pxinied  and  SoM  by 
R.  DRAPER,   Eu*3  &.  Gin..   fl.n3  T»  &;J. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1773.  443 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

Blessed  is  the  man  that  has  none  but  open  enemies,  and  wo  unto  the 
young  man  that  is  without  any — if  any  such  there  be  since  the  Golden  Age. 

An  eminent  station  is  a  sure  mark  for  envy,  which  is  the  Child  of  the 
Devil — or  rather  the  Devil's  mother. 


When  a  great  Blackguard  presumes  upon  his  eminent  Station  to  abuse 
a  stripling  that  cannot  meet  him  upon  equal  Terms,  'tis  the  wisest  Course 
for  the  latter  to  leave  the  Chastisement  of  his  insolence  to  the  grand 
Executioner  of  the  Universe. 


That  man  is  in  a  queer  situation  who  is  oblig'd  to  honor  an  office  when 
he  must  despise  the  wretch  that  holds  it. 

Full  Communion  in  some  Countries  is  equivalent  to  plenary  indulgen- 
cies  in  others. 

As  the  Reformation  is  said  to  have  begun  in  Harry  the  8Ws  breeches, 
so  in  our  times  some  notable  reformations  begin  there — rather  than  in  the 
head  or  heart,  and  thereabouts  is  often  the  spring  of  noble  deeds  imputed 
to  virtuous  resolutions. 

What  grand  projections  for  elections 

Now  are  plotting  here  and  there, 
Yet  nought  availing— more  prevailing 

To  address  the  generous  Fair. 

He  that  dictates  who  you  shall  marry,  might  by  the  same  arrogance 
dictate  what  sort  of  meat  you  shall  always  eat. 


Some  people  not  only  kill  as  much  time  as  they  can,  but  are  so  plaguy 
good  natur'd  &  friendly  as  to  make  their  acquaintance  commit  murder 
upon  it  against  their  wills. 

Affliction  is  the  School  of  Wisdom. 

The  grand  musician  for  the  heavenly  Spheres,  tunes  the  electric  Bass 
to  our  ravish' d  Ears. 

Providence  is  impartial  in  bestowing  riches  on  one,  and  contempt  of 
riches  on  another. 

Hope  is  the  most  upright  of  all  flatterers,  she  visits  the  poor  as  well 
as  the  rich.  

Liberty  is  a  more  noble  invigorating  cordial  than  Madeira;  think  of 
of  this  ye  splendid  Slaves,  Parasites  and  Pimps. 

Some  people  will  lose  their  best  Friend  rather  than  miss  cracking  a 
Joke— yet  cannot  bear  one  themselves. 


444  ALMANACK  FOR  1773. 

He's  not  your  Friend  that  Flatters,  but  he  that  tells  you  of  your  Faults. 


Some  s  *  *  *  s  take  advantage  of  that  text  of  scripture  "  What  goes  into 
the  body  denies  not  the  body,"  to  poison  all  their  acquaintance. — Surely 
it  was  not  spoken  like  a  Physician. 


The  monthly  page  for  want  of  wit 
Is  apt  to  hold  a  little  smut. 

The  real  wants  of  life  are  few  in  comparison  of  those  that  are  artificial — 
as  Mrs.  is  most  miserable  without  such  a  quantity  of  jewels. 


The  natives  of  this  land  are  as  witty  and  capable  of  improvement  as 

they  who  boast  their  English  extraction,  as  when  Col.  C ask'd  the 

old  Squaw  "  how  many  Commandments  are  there  ? "     "  Nine,  Sir,"  said 
she,  "  since  you  and  I  broke  one  behind  that  bush." 


The  amaz'd  new  Negro  sees  all  the  silver  gilded  trees,  and  never  saw 
the  fields  so  full  of  sugar  salt,  &  cotton  wool. 

How  agreeable  to  our  notions  of  liberty  would  it  be  to  see  the  Ladies 
lead  up  the  fashions  in  American  furs. 


How  a  Nation  may  be  ruirtd  and  reformed. 

There  are  two  pernicious  things  in  the  government  of  a 
nation  which  are  scarce  ever  remedied.  The  first  is  an  unjust 
and  too  violent  authority  in  Kings :  the  other  is  luxury,  which 
viciates  the  morals  of  the  people.  When  Kings  acknowledge  no 
law  but  their  own  will,  and  give  a  loose  to  their  most  exorbitant 
passions,  they  may  do  anything ;  but  by  this  very  power  they 
usurp  of  doing  anything,  they  sap  the  foundation  of  their  regal 
power;  they  go  by  no  certain  rules,  and  govern  by  no  fixed 
maxims ;  all  try  who  shall  flatter  them  most :  they  loose  their 
people  and  have  nothing  left  them  but  slaves,  whose  number 
diminishes  every  day.  Who  shall  tell  them  the  truth?  Who 
shall  set  bounds  to  this  torrent  ?  Every  thing  falls  before  it ;  the 
wisest  fly  away,  hide  themselves,  and  groan  in  secret :  nothing, 
but  a  sudden  violent  revolution,  can  bring  back  this  exorbitant 
power  into  its  natural  channel ;  nay  some  times  the  very  means 


ALMANACK   FOR    1773.  445 

made  use  of  to  reduce  it,  irrecoverably  destroy  it.  Nothing 
threatens  so  fatal  a  fall  as  an  authority  that  is  strained  too 
high :  it  is  like  a  bow  that  is  bent,  which  at  last  breaks  on  a  sud 
den  if  the  string  be  not  slacken'd :  But  who  is  he  that  will  dare 
to  slacken  it  ?  A  King  thus  corrupted  can  scarce  expedt  to  be 
reformed  without  a  kind  of  miracle.  And  as  too  great  authority 
intoxicates  and  poisons  Kings,  so  luxury  poisons  a  whole  nation. 
It  is  commonly  urged  "  that  luxury  serves  to  feed  the  poor  at  the 
expense  of  the  rich;"  as  if  the  poor  could  not  more  profitably 
provide  for  themselves  by  increasing  the  fruits  of  the  earth,  than 
by  unmaning  the  rich  by  the  refinements  of  voluptuousness. 
Thus  a  whole  nation  habituates  itself  to  look  upon  the  most 
superfluous  things,  as  the  necessaries  of  life  ;  and  thus  every  day 
brings  forth  some  new  necessity  of  the  same  kind,  and  men  can 
no  longer  live  without  things  which  but  thirty  years  ago  were 
utterly  unknown  to  them.  This  luxury  is  called  fine  taste,  the 
perfection  of  arts,  and  the  politeness  of  a  nation.  Thus  vice, 
which  carries  in  its  womb  an  infinite  number  of  others,  is  com 
mended  as  a  virtue  ;  it  spreads  its  contagion  from  the  King 
down  to  the  very  dregs  of  the  people ;  those  of  the  royal  blood 
are  willing  to  imitate  the  King's  magnificence;  the  men  of 
quality  imitate  the  King's  relations  ;  and  the  middle  sort  strive 
to  equal  those  of  quality ;  for  who  would  condemn  himself  when 
in  the  wrong?  The  lowest  rank  of  men  would  pass  for  a  middle 
sort ;  and  every  one  lives  above  his  condition,  some  for  ostenta 
tion,  and  to  make  a  shew  of  their  wealth  ;  others  through  a  mis 
taken  shame,  to  cloak  their  poverty.  Even  those  who  are  so 
wise  as  to  condemn  so  great  a  disorder,  are  not  so  wise  as  to 
dare  to  be  the  first  to  stem  the  tide,  or  to  set  contrary  examples. 
Thus  a  whole  nation  falls  to  ruin ;  all  conditions  and  ranks  of 
men  are  confounded  ;  an  eager  desire  to  support  a  vain  expense 
corrupts  the  purest  minds  ;  and  when  poverty  is  accounted  infa 
mous,  nothing  is  minded  but  how  to  get  rich.  Let  a  man  be 
learned,  skilful,  and  virtuous  ;  let  him  instruct  mankind,  win 
battles,  save  his  country,  and  sacrifice  everything  to  the  good 
of  the  public;  yet  he  will  be  despised,  unless  his  talents  be 
heightened  by  pomp  and  luxury.  Even  those  who  have  no 
fortune  will  appear  and  spend  as  if  they  had ;  and  so  they  fall  to 
borrowing,  cheating,  and  using  a  thousand  mean  arts  to  get 


446  ALMANACK   FOR    1773- 

money.  But  who  shall  remedy  these  evils?  The  relish  and 
customs  of  a  whole  nation  must  be  changed ;  new  laws  must  be 
given  them.  And  who  shall  attempt  this,  unless  the  King 
should  prove  to  be  so  much  of  a  Philosopher  as  to  set  an  example 
of  moderation  himself,  and  so  to  put  out  of  countenance  all  those 
who  love  a  pompous  expense ;  and  at  the  same  time/  encourage 
the  wise,  who  would  be  glad  to  be  authorized  in  a  virtuous 
frugality  ? 


on  I773» — On  the  title  page  this  year  is  represented  a  Jewish 
shekel  by  way  of  illustration,  and  the  verse  is  a  brief  poetical  epitome  of 
the  reasons  why  our  forefathers  left  England  for  the  shores  of  Massachu 
setts  ;  with  some  wholesome  advice  as  to  the  duty  of  their  descendants. 

The  practical  treatise  this  year  is  on  Grape  and  Wine  culture, — giving 
the  results  of  experimental  growing  at  Dedhani  and  in  the  vicinity,  and 
recommending  this  pursuit  to  the  husbandman  and  fruit  grower.  (It  is 
omitted  from  this  re-print  as  of  no  particular  interest.) 

A  political  address  on  "  Ruin  and  Reform"  and  addressed  to  the  King 
indirectly,  might  have  been  profitably  heeded  by  the  Prince  had  he  "taken 
in  "  Ames1  Almanack  ;  but  after  events  lead  us  to  surmise  that  he  was  not 
so  fortunately  provided. 

The  miscellany  on  either  page  of  the  astronomical  part  of  the  book  is 
replete  with  wisdom  and  wit,  mingled  with  odd  weather  predictions,  and 
parallels  drawn  between  "  Liberty  and  Madeira." 


ALMANACK    FOR    1774-  447 


THE  ALMANACK  FOR  1774. 


By  Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON  :  Printed  and  Sold  by 
R.  DRAPER,  EDES  &  GII.I,,  and  T.  &  J.  Fi,EET. 


With  Wonder  we  survey  the  upper  Air, 
And  the  gay  gilded  Meteors  sporting  there, 
And  lambent  Jellies  kindling  in  the  Night, 
Shoot  through  the  Aether  in  a  Trail  of  Light. 
How  rising  streams  in  th'  Azure  Fluid  blend, 
Or  fleet  in  Clouds,  or  in  soft  Show'rs  descend : 
Or  if  the  stubborn  rage  of  Cold  prevail, 
In  Flakes  they  fly,  or  fall  in  moulded  Hail. 
How  Honey-dews  imbalm  the  fragrant  Morn, 
And  the  fair  Oak  with  luscious  Sweets  adorn. 
How  Heat  and  Mixture1  mingle  in  a  Mass, 
Or  belch  in  Thunder,  or  in  Lightning  blaze, 
Why  nimble  Corruscations  strike  the  Eye, 
Or  bold  Tornadoes  bluster  in  the  Sky. 


Altho'  Tyranny  and  Oppression  may  excite  in  us  some  noble 
efforts  to  rival  Britain,  at  least  so  far  as  to  supply  our  necessities, 
in  manufacturing.  Yet  notwithstanding  our  rapid  increase, 
doubling  our  number  of  inhabitants  in  about  eighteen  years, 
besides  the  shoals  of  people  that  flock  hither  from  all  parts  of 
Europe,  so  long  as  this  wide  extended  continent  affords  such  an 
ample  field  for  agriculture,  and  other  rich  resources  that  will 
turn  to  infinitely  greater  profit  than  manufacturing,  and  which 
will,  instead  of  discouragement,  meet  with  the  protection  of 
our  mother  Country,  as  soon  as  we  have  brought  her  to  her 

1  Moisture.  (?) 


448  ALMANACK  FOR  1774. 

former  senses,  it  is  very  unlikely  that  we  shall  be  so  blind  to 
our  interest  as  to  take  that  work  out  of  the  hands  of  Britains 
and  Hybernians  which  they  will  do  so  much  cheaper  and  better 
than  we  can  get  ourselves,  Turn  we  therefore  our  thoughts  on 
Agriculture.1  ******* 


INSCRIPTION  over  a  Chimney   Piece  in  a  Gentleman's  Dining 

Room. 


Vive  la  Libertd. 


To  my  BEST  my  Friends  are  free, 

Free  with  that,  and  free  with  me ; 
Free  to  pass  the  harmless  joke, 

And  the  Tube  sedately  Smoke ; 
Free  to  drink  just  what  they  please, 

As  at  Home,  and  at  their  ease ; 
Free  to  speak,  as  free  to  think, 

( No  Informers  with  me  drink) 
Free  to  stay  a  Night  or  so, 

And  when  uneasy  free  to  go. 


INTERLINED  WISDOM  AND  HUMOUR. 

As  Men  salute  a  Prostitute 

At  the  Expence  of  Noses 

Some  Ladies  still  their  Tea  do  swill 

Tho'  it  ruin  their  Spouses. 

American  Pedigree  is  as  much  respected  as  a  delicate  Pair  of  Hands  in 
a  House  of  Poverty  and  there  is  no  Merit  in  either. 


No  Preacher  but  Time  is  listened  to  which  gives  us  the  same  Train  and 
turn  of  Thought  that  elder  People  have  tried  in  vain  to  put  into  our  Heads 
before. 

Pleasant  giving  Weather,  but  I  esteem  taking  Weather  most. 

1  The  article  on  "  Vineyards  and  Wine  making"  is  omitted  from  this 
eprint. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1774.  449 

I  have  known  some  little  Wits  aim  their  pointless  Satire  against  the 
whole  Tribe  of  Almanack  makers  because  Sivift  facetiously  killed  poor 
Partridge  with  Ink,  and  buried  him  alive. 


The  latter  part  of  a  wise  Man's  life  is  taken  up  in  curing  the  Follies, 
Prejudices  and  false  Opinions  he  had  contracted  in  the  former. 
Sudden  Acquaintance  brings  Repentance. 
Showery  and  unsettled  Weather  without  as  Mrs.  Coquetilla  is  within. 


It  is  astonishing  to  see  how  the  Race  of  Spaniels  encreases  amongst  us 
of  late  Years,  especially  in  this  Month  of  Elections. 

If  you  fall  into  Misfortunes,  creep  through  those  Bushes  which  have 
fewest  Briars. 

Some  Men  under  a  Notion  of  weeding  out  Prejudices,  eradicate  virtue, 
honesty  and  religion. 

What  they  do  in  Heaven  we  are  ignorant  of  What  they  do  not,  we  are 
told  expressly.  The  way  to  Heaven  is  in  all  Places  alike. 

Puffing,  belching,  f  *  *  *  *  *  g  l  Weather. 


Herodotus  tells  us  that  "  in  Cold  Countries  Beasts  have  very  seldom 
Horns,  but  in  Hot,  they  have  very  large  ones."  This  might  bear  a  very 
pleasant  Application ! 

A  high  Fortune  like  great  Buildings  have  low  Foundations. 


The  reason  why  so  few   Marriages  are   happy  is  because  the   young 
Ladies  spend  so  much  of  their  Time  in  making  Nets,  not  in  making  Cages. 
Censure  is  the  Tax  a  man  pays  to  the  Public  for  being  eminent. 
No  wise  Man  ever  wished  to  be  younger. 


Law  in  a  free  Country  is  or  ought  to  be  the  determination  of  the 
majority  of  those  who  have  property  in  land. 

The  encouragement  of  Arts  and  Sciences  often  renders  a  Nation  more 
powerful  than  arms. 

I  have  known  some  Men  stab  a  Character  under  a  Cloak  of  friendship 
thus  :  "  My  friend the  attorney  is  very  clever,  but  always  unfortu 
nate  for  his  clients,  &c. 

1  "  Sits  the  wind  in  that  corner? 
"  There  is  something  in  the  wind. 
"  How  now  lad !  is  the  wind  in  that  door,  i'  faith  ? 
"  111  blows  the  wind. 

"  O !  ill-dispersing  wind  of  misery.  Methinks  the  wind  hath  spoke 
aloud." — Domestic  conversations  of  the  Bard  of  Avon. — in  Press. 


450  ALMANACK  FOR  1774. 

Venus \  a  beautiful  good  natur'd  Lady,  was  the  Goddess  of  Love;  Juno> 
a  terrible  Shrew,  the  Goddess  of  Marriage,  and  they  were  always  Mortal 
Bnemies. 

Religion  is  a  cloak,  honesty  a  pair  of  shoes  worn  out  in  the  dirt,  vanity 
a  shirt,  and  conscience  a  pair  of  breeches,  which,  tho'  a  cover  for  lewdness 
and  nastiness,  is  easily  slipt  down  for  the  service  of  either. 

All  Men  are  idolaters ;  some  of  honor,  some  of  riches. 


As  it  is  unpardonable  for  a  Navigator  to  be  without  his  charts,  so  it  is 
for  a  Senator  to  be  without  HIS,  which  is  Lock's  "  Bssay  on  Government." 


Dec.  16.     East  India  TEA  destroyed  in  Boston  1773. 
The  honest  Farmer  now  at  Ease 
Regales  himself  with  Cyder,  Bread  and  Cheese 
And  further  to  himself  amuse 
He  smokes  his  Pipe  &  reads  the  News. 


The  Definition  of  the  Title  of  LADIES. 

Women  of  Fortune  were  called  LADIKS  even  before  their 
Husbands  had  any  Title  to  convey  that  Mark  of  Distinction  to 

them. It  was  formerly  the  Fashion  for  those  Families  whom 

God  had  blessed  with  Affluence,  to  live  constantly  at  their 
Mansion-Houses  in  the  Country,  and  that  once  a  Week  or  oftener, 
the  I^ady  of  the  Manor  distributed  to  her  poor  Neighbours,  with 
her  own  Hands,  a  certain  Quantity  of  Bread,  and  she  was  called 
by  them  the  Leff-Day,1  i.  e.  in  Saxon,  the  Bread  Giver.  These 
two  Words  in  Time  were  corrupted  and  the  Meaning  is  now  as 
little  known  as  the  Practice  which  gave  rise  to  it ;  yet  it  is  from 
that  hospitable  Custom  that,  to  this  Day,  the  English  Ladies,  and 
they  only,  serve  the  Meat  at  their  own  Tables. 


The  Difinition  of  HOB  or  NOB. 

In  the  Days  of  good  Queen  Bess  (we  find  it  upon  Record)  the 
Maids  of  Honour  not  only  used  manly  Exercise,  but  eat  Roast 
beef  and  drank  Ale  for  Breakfast,  and  as  in  their  masculine 
Exercises  they  were  liable  to  Accidents  and  the  Tooth-ach,  so  it 

1  The  Saxon  word,  according  to  Webster,  is  hlafdie.     ED. 


ALMANACK    FOR    1774.  451 

was  natural  for  them  occasionally  to  warm  their  Beer,  which 
they  who  required  such  Indulgence  generally  did  by  ordering 
their  cupfuls  to  be  placed  on  the  Hob1  of  the  Grate:  and  when 
any  of  the  Company  called  for  Beer,  it  was  just  as  natural  for 
their  Attendants  to  ask  "if from  the  Hob,  or  not  from  the  Hob?" 
which  constant  Practice  (from  the  constant  Indisposition  of  one 
or  the  other  of  these  fair  Ladies)  was  soon  not  only  remarked 
by  the  Courtiers,  but  also  perhaps,  first  humorously  adopted  by 
them,  with  the  Courtly  Vice  of  Corrupting  Hob  or  no  Hob  into 
HOB  OR  NOB. 

RUSTICUS  has  given  a  Receipt  to  destroy  Rats  in  Farm 
Houses  &c.  which  will  prevent  the  fatal  consequences  accruing 
from  the  Method  often  used  of  mixing  Rats  bane :  It  is  as 
follows,  viz. 

Take  of  the  Seeds  of  Stavesacre  (Larkswort)  or  Lousewort, 
powdered  more  or  less  as  the  Occasion  requires,  one  Part,  of 
Oatmeal,  three  Parts :  mix  them  well,  and  make  them  up  into  a 
Paste  with  Honey.  I^ay  Pieces  of  it  in  the  Holes,  and  on  the 
Places  where  Rats  and  Mice  frequent,  and  it  will  effectually  kill 
or  rid  the  Place  of  those  kind  of  Vermin  by  their  eating  thereof. 


OH  1774. — The  salutatory  verse  on  the  title  page  realizes  the 
truth  of  the  old-saying,  "  like  father,  like  son;"  the  sentiment  and  the 
description  being  an  absolute  reflex  of  the  mind  of  the  present  author's 
father. 

The  practical  address  to  the  farmer  opens  with  an  allusion  which 
cites  the  condition  of  things  politically,  and  the  rapid  increase  of  popu 
lation  which  the  many  advantages  of  the  new  world  has  encouraged. 

The  author  in  this  essay  again  repeats  his  former  adulation  of  agricul 
ture,  and  the  larger  and  more  certain  profit  which  will  inure  to  the  hus 
bandman,  than  to  those  who  embark  in  manufacturing. 

A  quaint  "  Inscription  over  a  Chimney-Piece  in  a  Gentleman's  Dining 
Room"  is  quoted ;  and  an  ingenious  research  has  given  us  in  this  number 
"  the  Definition  of  the  Title  of  Ladies"  and  another  extract  from  the 
Author's  dictionary,  tells'us  of  the  origin  of  "Hob  or  Nob  ;"  while  a  prac 
tical  subject  is  again  manifested  in  the  closing  item  of  the  year's  miscel 
lany,  viz:  "a  receipt  to  destroy  Rats" 

1  The  two  flat  Sides  contiguous  to  the  Grate,  made  to  hold  any  thing  on 
for  the  Benefit  of  moderate  Heat,  were  called  anciently  Hobs. 


452  ALMANACK  FOR  1775. 

The  weather  column  is  found  to  be  unusually  attractive;  wisdom,  and 
sturdy  plain  language,  abounds  on  every  page,  Secrets  and  Spouses, — 
Pedigree  and  Preachers, —  Astrology  and  Almanack  Makers, — Pride  and 
Prejudice, — Folly  and  Flatulence, — Herodotus  and  Horns, — Fortune  and 
Foundation  ;  with  many  merry  allusions  and  drolleries  all  mixed  together 
in  a  pleasant  pot  pourri,  both  interesting  and  entertaining  as  usual. 


THE    ALMANACK     FOR     1775 


By  Nathaniel  Ames. 


BOSTON:    Printed  and  Sold  at 
DRAPER'S,  EDES  &  GH.I.S,  and  T.  &  J.  FLEETS. 


LET  tyrant  princes  distant  climes  explore, 

For  wealth  and  power  drench  in  human  gore. 

Let  fleets  and  armies  make  their  subjects  pine, 

And  mouths  of  cannon  prove  their  right  divine. 

Let  India  merchants,  tyrants  o'er  the  Bast, 

Extend  their  baneful  commerce  to'ard  the  West. 

Let  spaniel  courtiers  lick  their  master's  feet, 

And  conscious  meanness  make  them  feel  they're  great, 

While  art  and  science  fix  their  standard  here, 

All  hell  combin'd  no  longer  need  we  fear. 

Let  savage  virtue  give  a  loose  the  reigns, 

Our  slaughter'd  traitors  poison  all  the  plains. 


AMES. 

With  whatever  just  indignation  we  may  receive  the  feeble 
efforts  of  the  super  animated  juntocracy  against  our  Capital  &c., 
when  the  real  Omnipotent  displays  his  wrath,  with  deep  con 
trition  of  soul  should  we  kiss  the  rod,  and  by  a  sincere  reforma 
tion  obtain  his  mercy.  Whether  the  fleet  and  army  now  stationed 


ALMANACK  FOR  1775.  453 

there  may  come  under  the  former  predicament,  or  the  foul 
diseases  that  accompany  them  under  the  latter,  shall  be  left  to 
the  "discussion  of  more  able  casuists :  but  as  one  kind  of  pox 
with  which  they  are  visited,  is  in  the  natural  way  justly  alarm 
ing  to  the  most  virtuous,  as  well  as  others  that  have  never  had  it : 
a  short  history  of  the  fam'd  Innoculation  may  not  be  unseason 
able.  The  Circassian  women  have,  from  time  immemorial  com 
municated  the  small-pox  to  their  children,  when  not  above  six 
months  old  by  making  an  incision  in  the  arm  :  and  by  putting 
into  the  incision  a  pustle  taken  from  the  body  of  another  child, 
this  pustle  produces  the  same  effect  in  the  arm  it  is  laid  in  as 
yest  in  a  piece  of  dough :  It  ferments  and  diffuses  thro'  the 
whole  mass  of  blood  the  qualities  it  is  impregnated  with.  The 
pustles  of  the  child  in  whom  the  artificial  'small-pox  has  been 
thus  inoculated  are  employed  to  communicate  the  same  distem 
per  to  others.  There  is  an  almost  perpetual  circulation  of  it  in 
Circassia :  and  when  unhappily  the  small-pox  has  quite  left  the 
country,  the  inhabitants  of  it  are  in  as  great  trouble  and  per 
plexity,  as  other  nations  when  their  harvest  has  fallen  short. 
The  circumstance  that  introduced  a  custom  in  Circassia  which 
appears  so  singular  to  others,  is  nevertheless  a  cause  common  to 
all  nations. — I  mean  maternal  tenderness  and  interest. 

The  Circassians  are  poor  and  their  daughters  are  beautiful : 
and  indeed  'tis  in  them  they  chiefly  trade.  They  furnish  with 
beauties  the  seraglios  of  the  Turkish  Sultan,  of  the  Persian  Sophy 
and  of  all  those  who  are  wealthy  enough  to  purchase  and  maintain 
so  precious  merchandize.  There  maidens  are  very  honorably 
and  virtuously  instructed  to  fondle  and  caress  men  :  are  taught 
dances  of  a  very  polite  and  effeminate  kind  :  and  how  to  heighten 
by  the  most  voluptuous  artifices  the  pleasures  of  their  disdainful 
masters  for  whom  they  are  design'd.  These  unhappy  Creatures 
repeat  their  lesson  to  their  mothers  in  the  same  manner  as  little 
girls  among  us  repeat  their  Catechism,  without  understanding 
one  word  they  say. 

Now  it  often  happened  that  after  a  father  and  mother,  had 
taken  the  utmost  care  of  the  education  of  their  children,  they 
were  frustrated  of  all  their  hopes  in  an  instant.  The  small  pox 
getting  into  the  family,  one  daughter  dy'd  of  it,  another  lost  an 
eye,  a  third  had  a  great  nose  at  her  recovery,  and  the  unhappy 


454  ALMANACK  FOR  1775. 

parents  were  compleatly  ruined.  Even  frequently  when  the 
small-pox  became  Epidemical  trade  was  suspended  for  several 
years,  which  thin'd  very  considerably  the  seraglios  of  Persia 
and  Turkey. 

A  trading  nation  is  always  watchful  over  its  own  interests, 
and  grasps  at  every  discovery  that  may  be  of  advantage  to  its 
commerce.  The  Circassians  observ'd  that  scarce  one  person  in 
a  thousand  was  attack'd  by  a  small-pox  of  a  violent  kind.  That 
some  indeed  had  this  distemper  three  or  four  times,  but  never 
twice  so  as  to  prove  fatal :  in  a  word  that  no  one  ever  had  it 
twice  in  a  violent  degree  in  his  life.  They  observ'd  further, 
that  when  the  small-pox  is  of  the  milder  sort,  and  the  pustules 
have  only  a  tender  delicate  skin  to  break  thro'  they  never  leave 
the  least  scar  in  the  face.  From  these  natural  observations 
they  concluded,  that  in  case  an  infant  of  six  months  or  a  year 
old  should  have  a  milder  sort  of  small-pox,  he  would  not  die  of 
it,  would  not  be  mark'd,  nor  be  ever  afflicted  with  it  again.  In 
order  therefore  to  preserve  the  life  and  beauty  of  their  children 
the  only  thing  remaining  was,  to  give  them  the  small-pox  in 
their  infant  years.  This  they  did  by  innoculating,  in  the  body 
of  a  child,  a  pustule  taken  from  the  most  regular  and  at  the  same 
time  the  most  favourable  sort  of  small  pox  that  could  be  pro- 
cur'd.  The  Experiment  could  not  possibly  fail.  The  Turks 
who  are  people  of  good  sense  soon  adopted  this  custom,  in  so 
much  that  at  this  time  there  is  not  a  Bassa  in  Constantinople 
but  communicates  the  small-pox  to  his  children  of  both  sexes, 
immediately  upon  their  being  wean'd.  Some  pretend  that  the 
Circassians  borrowed  the  custom  from  the  Arabians :  but  we 
shall  leave  the  clearing  up  of  this  point  to  some  learned  recluse 
who  will  not  fail  to  compile  a  great  many  folios  on  this  subject, 
with  the  several  proofs  or  authorities.  All  I  have  to  say  upon 
it,  is,  that  in  the  beginning  of  the  reign  of  King  George  the 
first,  the  Lady  Wortley  Montagu,  a  woman  of  as  fine  a  genius 
and  endu'd  with  as  great  a  strength  of  mind  as  any  of  her  sex  in 
the  British  dominions,  being  with  her  husband  who  was  ambas 
sador  at  the  Porte,  made  no  scruple  to  communicate  the  small 
pox  to  an  infant,  of  which  she  was  delivered  in  Constantinople. 
The  chaplain  represented  to  his  lady,  but  to  no  purpose,  that  this 
was  an  unchristian  operation,  and  therefore  that  it  would  succeed 


ALMANACK  FOR  1775.  455 

with  none  but  infidels.  However  it  had  the  most  happy  effect 
upon  the  son  of  the  lady  Wortley  Montagu,  who  at  her  return 
to  England,  communicated  the  experiments  to  the  Princess  of 
Wales. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  this  princess,  abstracted  from  her 
crown  and  titles  was  born  to  encourage  the  whole  circle  of  arts, 
and  to  do  good  to  mankind.  The  moment  this  princess  heard 
of  innoculation  she  caused  an  experiment  to  be  made  of  it  on 
four  criminals  sentenc'd  to  die,  and  by  that  means  preserv'd  their 
lives  doubly,  for  she  not  only  saved  them  from  the  gallows,  but 
by  means  of  this  artificial  small-pox  prevented  their  ever  having 
that  distemper  the  natural  way  with  which  they  would  very 
probably  have  been  attack'd  one  time  or  other,  and  might  have 
died  of  in  a  more  advanced  age.  The  princess  being  assured  of 
the  usefulness  of  the  operation,  caus'd  her  own  children  to  be 
innoculated.  A  great  part  of  the  kingdom  followed  her  example, 
and  since  that  time  thousands  of  children  have  owed  their  lives 
in  this  manner  to  her  majesty,  for  she  has  since  been  queen  of 
England,  and  to  the  lady  Wortley  Montagu  :  and  as  many  of  the 
fair  sex  are  obliged  to  them  for  their  beauty. 

Upon  a  general  calculation  made  in  Europe,  three  score  per 
sons  in  every  hundred  have  the  small-pox.  Of  these  three  score, 
twenty  die  of  it,  in  the  most  favourable  season  of  life,  and  as 
many  more  wear  the  disagreeable  remains  of  it  in  their  faces  so 
long  as  they  live.  Thus  a  fifth  part  of  mankind  either  die  or  are 
disfigured  by  this  distemper.  But  it  does  not  prove  fatal  to  so 
much  as  one,  who  are  inoculated  in  Turkey,  England  or  here, 
unless  the  patient  be  infirm,  or  would  have  died  if  the  experi 
ment  had  not  been  made  upon  him.  Besides,  no  one  is  disfig 
ured  no  one  has  the  small-pox  a  second  time  if  the  inoculation 
was  perfect. 

It  is  said  the  Chinese  have  practis'd  inoculation  these  hundred 
years,  a  circumstance  that  urges  very  much  in  its  favor,  since 
they  are  thought  to  be  the  wisest  and  best  govern'd  people  in  the 
world.  The  Chinese  indeed  don't  communicate  this  distemper 
by  inoculation,  but  at  the  nose  in  the  same  manner  as  we  take 
snuff.  This  is  a  more  agreeable  way,  but  then  it  produces  the 
like  effects,  and  proves  that  inoculation  saves  the  lives  of  thou 
sands. 


456  ALMANACK  FOR  1775. 

JANUARY.      I  call  the  man  unworthy  of  my  praise 

Who  wins  the  palm  in  wrestling  or  the  race  ; 
Though  nature  gave  him  Tithon's  form  divine, 
And  Asia  pour'd  him  wealth  from  ev'ry  mine, 
Though  fortune  every  other  virtue  gave, 
And  yet  deny  the  greatest to  the  brave. 

Save  your  money  and  you  save  your  country. 

To  borrow  on  usury  brings  sudden  beggary. 

Jan.  30.     King  Charles  I  established  a  memento  for  tyrants. 


FEBRUARY.  And  brave  alone  is  he  who  can  sustain 
The  wild  confusion  of  the  bloody  plain. 
Can  death  and  wounds  behold  with  dire  delight, 
And  shady  legions  moving  to  the  fight 
For  he  alone  a  lasting  name  can  raise, 
And  crown  his  early  years  with  martial  praise, 
Who  in  the  front  of  battle  stands  unmov'd 
The  bulwark  of  the  country  which  he  lov'd. 

All  men  and  states,  however  Divine  they  may  appear,  are  often  so 
unguarded  as  to  manifest  their  humanity — if  not  their  deviltry,  as  we  have 
some  late  Instances,  one  is  the  King  of  Prussia,  but  none  nearer  Home. 


MARCH.         And  loving,  prodigal  of  life,  to  die, 
Avoids  no  evil  more  than  basely  fly, 
His  great  example  shall  the  host  inspire, 
And  thousands  follow  actions  they  admire. 
He  turns  the  phalanx  of  the  foe  to  flight, 
And  rules  with  martial  art,  the  tide  of  fight. 

A  good  housewife  commonly  is  no  sheep — more  of  a  goose. 

Fine  weather  for  New  Bngland  about  the  barracks,  but  stormy,  tem 
pestuous,  and  bosterious  when  those  Irish  hero's  are  much  in  it,  or  it  in 
them. 

APRIL.  And  when  he  falls  amid  the  field  of  fame 

He  leaves  behind  a  great  and  lasting  name. 
His  Sire,  his  country  shall  with  joy  surround 
His  corse,  and  read  their  glory  in  his  wound. 
Both  young  and  old  shall  sing  his  dirge  of  wo, 
And  his  long  funeral  all  the  town  pursue  : 
His  tomb  shall  be  rever'd ;  his  children  shine 
Through  ev'ry  age,  along  extended  line. 

We  are  most  apt  to  censure  that  vice  in  others  which  we  feel  ourselves 
most  given  to. 


ALMANACK  FOR  1775.  457 


MAY.  Who  never  from  the  field  of  battle  flies, 

But  for  his  children  and  his  country  dies 
Ne'er  shall  his  glory  fade,  or  cease  his  fame 
Tho'  laid  in  dust,  immortal  is  his  name. 
But  if  the  sable  hand  of  death  he  shun, 
Returning  victor  with  his  glory  won. 


As  it  is  rare  since  the  Days  of  a  certain  Roman  Emperor,  for  hornsmiths 
to  have  the  sanction  of  the  Senate,  some  of  our  Daughters  of  Liberty 
must  inform  who  are  the  best  workmen. 

Nothing  is  more  precious  than  time,  and  nothing  more  prodigally 
wasted. 


JUNE.  By  young  and  old  reve'rd,  his  life  he'll  lead, 

And  full  of  honor  sink  among  the  dead. 
Or  with  his  growing  years  his  fame  will  grow, 
And  all  shall  reverence  his  head  of  snow : 
The  higher  place  from  every  youth  he  bears, 
And  age  shall  quit  him  all  the  claim  of  years. 
Who  then  desires  to  rise  to  such  a  height, 
Desires  in  vain,  if  he  forgets  the  fight. 

Cato  stabbed  himself  and  Widows  on  the  coast  of  Malabar  burn  them 
selves  because  it  is  the  fashion — and  here  we  drink  Tea,  and  wear  British 
Finery  because  it  is  the  fashion — like  the  bulls  and  heifers  of  old  adorn'd 
with  ribbons  and  gilded  horns  before  their  destruction. 


Ye  then  who  late  dispers'd  the  savage  foe, 
Whose  wide  domains  your  latest  sons  shall  sow : 
Ye  knew  the  horrid  work  of  arms  before, 
The  dismal  shock  of  battle  oft  ye  bore, 
To  scout  and  skulk  to  gain  the  scalp  you've  run, 
In  each  reverse  to  vou  is  fortune  known. 

Most  people  can  preach  for  their  neighbors  when  the  spirit  moves. 
It  is  often  pride  and  curiosity  that  involves  us  in  difficulties. 
Nature  is  limited  but  fancy  is  boundless. 

Fine  weather  for  fighting,  and  for  lawyers  who  for  one  year's  famine 
will  have  seven  of  plenty. 

AUGUST.        Stand  forth  the  Champions  of  your  Country's  cause, 
Nor  fear  the  traitors  aided  by  their  laws, 
Exalt  the  shady  buckler  to  the  war, 
Aided  by  heav'n,  no  human  prowess  fear, 
For  those  who,  in  the  front  of  battle,  dare 
Fight  hand  to  hand,  and  bear  the  brunt  of  war, 


458  ALMANACK  FOR  1775. 

SEPTEMBER.    But  rarely  fall — Though  dastards  skulk  behind, 

The  fate  they  shun  still  haunts  the  cow'rdly  kind. 
What  mind  can  well  conceive,  or  tongue  relate, 
The  ills  unnani'd  that  on  the  truant  wait  ? 
To  shun  his  fate  when  from  the  field  he  flies, 
Pierc'd  from  behind  th'  inglorious  coward  dies, 
When  prone  he  lies,  and  gasping  on  the  ground, 
What  shame  to  see  behind  the  gaping  Wound ! 

Who  can  serve  five  hundred  masters  faithfully  when  they  are  three 
thousand  miles  off. 

St.  Bvremonde  says  that  the  last  sighs  of  a  handsome  woman  are  not 
so  much  for  the  loss  of  her  life  as  for  her  beauty. 

Rain,  thunder,  no !  thunder  first,  then  rain  !  so  said  Socrates  when  he 
receiv'd  his  wife's  warm  fragrant  shower  from  a  Window. 

A  servant  of  servants  is  too  low  for  human  nature. 

South  winds  then  some  quickening  showers  somewhere  at  least  of 
Xantippe's  kind,  then  serene  air  sometime  except  among  those  that 
charg'd  too  deep  for  the  King's  health,  and  too  many  sentimental  toasts. 


OCTOBER.          But  firm  to  Earth  let  ev'ry  warrior  grow, 

Strain  his  large  limbs,  and  low'ring  eye  the  foe, 
To  mighty  deeds  let  each  his  arms  extend, 
Nor  dread  the  balls  that  breast-high  muskets  send 
Our  practis'd  huntsmen,  sure  of  flying  game, 
Ne'er  fight  in  phalanx  when  they've  surer  aim. 

NOVEMBER.      No  dazzling  arms  our  steady  marksmen  hold, 
No  heavy  panoply,  or  casque  of  gold 
But  sure  as  death,  the  trusty  piece  he  bears, 
And  fears  no  wild,  or  powder'd  son  of  Mars. 
Make  ready  then — and  fierce  begin  the  fray ! 
But  pause  awhile — and  hear  what  sages  say, 
Deep  read  in  history,  who  know  mankind, 
The  arts  and  stratagems  sly  courtiers  find. 

Lycurgus,  by  one  of  his  laws,  had  prohibited  to  light  those  who  came 
in  the  night  from  a  feast,  that  the  fear  of  not  being  able  to  get  home  might 
hinder  their  getting  drunk. 

Muggy  air  among  tipplers,  and  thick  smoky  air  among  the  minor  poli 
ticians,  and  it  may  end  in  a  storm. 

The  Emperor  Caligula  wish'd  the  Romans  had  all  but  one  neck,  that  he 
might  behead  them  all  at  one  blow.  Have  we  not  some  Caligulas  ? 

The  pleasure  of  what  we  enjoy  is  commonly  lost  by  coveting  more. 


DECEMBER.     To  bribe  the  chiefs  of  their  contending  foes, 
To  gain  the  cause  by  safer  means  than  blows 


ALMANACK   FOR    1775-  459 

How  one  grand  centre  must  the  whole  survey, 
By  posts  and  couriers  its  resolves  convey 
How  civil  wisdom  must  the  arms  controul, 
To  act  in  concert  like  one  mighty  soul. 

The  ladies  should  consider  that  when  men  view  a  nag  they  always  look 
at  the  teeth. 

The  Queen  Henrietta  of  England  being  in  a  vessel  in  a  furious  storm, 
comforted  her  companions  by  telling  them  that  queens  were  never 
drowned. 

Good  slaying  amongst  the  poultry,  and  pleasant  air  to  exercise  the 
knife  and  fork,  then  comes  falling  weather  if  spirits  are  plenty. 


The  SIGNS  Discontented. 

THEY  question  Jove,  why  he  had  not 

In  Heav'n  a  Stock  of  Females  laid  in  ? 
He  but  one  Woman  there  had  brought, 

Who  was  (provoking ! )  still  a  Maiden. 
Frankly  the  Ram  confessed  that  he 

Had  often  cast  a  Sheep 's  Eye  at  her ; 
Aquarius  acknowledg'd  she 

Had  often  made  his  Mouth  to  Water. 
The  Bull  would  have  the  God  to  know, 

Either  he  would  no  longer  stay  there, 
Or  if  he  did  not  get  a  Cow, 

In  Faith  he  would  Pasiphae  her. 
Poor  Virgo  how  to  please  them  all, 

Being  really  at  a  Loss  to  know, 
To  th'  Archer  said,  I  fear  I  shall 

Have  more  than  two  Strings  to  my  Bow. 
But  if  to  you  I  should  prove  kind, 

The  rest  would  make  the  same  Request, 
Shall  I  be  with  a  Scorpion  join'd, 

Or  take  a  Cancer  to  my  Breast  ? 
Nor  should  my  coyness  you  displease, 

This  was  the  Purpose  of  my  Birth  ; 
Not  only  you  to  tantalize, 

But  all  the  Star-Gazers  on  Earth. 
Not  for  the  Sun  or  Moon  but  me, 

Astronomers  make  such  a  pother ; 
The  Thing  is  they  would  rather  see 

My  heavenly  Body  than  another. 
For  such  a  peep  they  should  not  hope, 

But  mind  their  own  Terrestrial  Lasses ; 
My  Petticoats  they'll  ne'er  see  up. 

With  all  their  Tellescopes  and  Glasses. 


460  ALMANACK  FOR  1775. 

AMES'     FAREWELL. 


Notes  on  his  last  Almanack  for  the  year  1775. 

With  much  regret,  we  in  this  instance,  (as  in  every  other  of  human 
affairs,)  must  note  the  final  end,  and  bid  farewell  to  our  author,  under 
whose  family  name  two  generations  have  been  amused  and  instructed  for 
a  period  of  fifty  years. 

The  situation  of  affairs,  and  the  minds  of  the  colonists  generally  is 
exemplified  in  the  title  verse  through  whose  lines  Bcllona  armored  stalks 
with  sanguinary  footsteps. 

The  poetical  contributions  at  the  top  of  each  month  incite  to  deeds  of 
bravery,  to  patriotism,  to  victory,  liberty  or  glorious  death  upon  the  tented 
field.  The  grandeur  of  the  combat,  the  pomp  and  circumstance  of  "  grim- 
visaged  war  "  is  depicted,  and  the  duty  of  every  citizen  to  arm  for  the 
encounter  is  vividly  portrayed.  Patriotism  and  America  for  Americans 
beams  from  every  syllable  in  this  year's  production,  and  every  line  can  be 
read  and  re-read  with  unflagging  interest.  Even  the  final  essay  though 
introduced  with  the  usual  "  fly"  at  the  "  home  government,"  will  be  found 
to  be  a  very  instructive  account  of  the  origin  and  practice  of  "Inoculation 
for  the  Small-pox"  the  precaution  in  this  disease  antecedent  to  the  dis 
covery  and  application  of  vaccination  by  Dr.Jenner. 

The  interlined  Wisdom  and  Humour  is  more  than  ordinarily  jovial  and 
pointed,  and  his  final  almanack  may  almost  be  said  to  exceed  in  every 
quality,  any  of  his  preceding  productions. 


NOTE. — As  has  been  said,  this  was  the  last  of  the  Almanacks  prepared 
by  Dr.  Ames.  Subsequently  several  spurious  issues  appeared  bearing  his 
name,  but  these  soon  expired,  and  other  Philomaths  entered  the  field  to 
occupy  public  attention  for  a  while,  retiring  in  a  few  years  to  absolute 
obscurity. 

The  "Ames  "  were  the  last  of  the  great  Almanack  makers,  and  with  the 
opening  of  the  Revolution  the  "  art "  decayed,  and  was  buried  with  its 
fathers. 


VALEDICTORY. 


!  Laus  Deo,  this  book  is  completed— at  least  the 
foregoing  "copy"  is  with  the  printer,  there  to  await  a 
resurrection  at  his  hands. 

The  contents  of  the  original  almanacks  have  been  carefully 
compiled  from  such  copies  as  I  possess  (all  but  1726-7-30-33),  and 
the  rest  of  the  copy  has  been  made  from  the  complete  set 
formerly  owned  by  the  Doctors  Ames,  now  in  the  archives  of  the 
Dedham  Historical  Society.  Nothing  has  been  omitted  that 
would  either  interest,  instruct  or  amuse. 

I  have  ventured  to  add  running  notes  and  other  memoranda 
which  appeared  to  me  to  be  appropriate. 

There  may  possibly  be  some  repetitions — tautological,  if  you 
please — of  the  same  thoughts  or  relation  in  various  places. 
Should  they  prove  interesting,  it  will  pay,  perhaps,  to  read  them 
a  second  time  ;  should  the  opposite  quality  exist,  there  will  be 
no  harm  done  if  you  pass  them  by. 

Again  there  may  be  an  existing  notion  that  I  should  have 
elaborated  still  more  upon  the  author's  production.  In  reply  I 
would  object  that  it  would  not  be  possible  for  me  to  take  my 
readers  by  the  hand,  walk  through  this  "  Island  of  Tranquil 
Delights"  and  point  out  all  the  bright  spots — for  much  reading 
must  be  done  between  the  lines  ;  that  familiarity  with  the  work 
may  cause  new  ideas  to  be  formed,  and  fresh  sources  of  enjoy 
ment  to  appear  and  be  appreciated. 


462  VALEDICTORY. 

Again,  an  attempt  to  improve,  or  enlighten  any  of  the 
author's  bright  sayings,  would  be  as  superfluous  as  to  "  paint  the 
lily,  or  gild  the  fine  gold." 

That  some  may  be  disappointed, — perhaps  horrified — when 
this  book  is  received,  goes  without  saying;  but  nothing  of  a 
terrestrial  nature  can  add  to,  or  take  away  one  iota  of  the  pleasure 
I  have  had  with  the  Doctors  Ames,  in  collating,  reading,  quoting 
and  compiling  this  collection  of  their  humble  works. 

In  some  instances  I  may  have  exhibited  a  flippant  manner,  or 
treated  a  serious  subject  with  what  might  be  called  levity. 
Consider,  therefore,  the  age  in  which  our  authors  lived ;  reflect 
upon  the  fact  that  for  many  moons  I  have  lived  and  breathed  in 
an  atmosphere  redolent  with  the  language,  manners  and  customs 
of  the  time  in  which  these  and  other  similar  productions  were 
brought  forth.  Then  for  these  reasons,  of  thy  charity  pray  be 
kind,  and  "  in  thy  orisons  be  all  my  sins  remembered." 

Faithfully  yours, 


APPENDIX. 


Entertainment  for  A  Winter's  Evening:  being  A  Full  and  True  Account 
Of  a  very  strange  and  wonderful  sight  seen  in  Boston  on  the  twenty- 
seventh  of  December  at  Noon-Day. 

The  Truth  of  which  can  be  attested  by  a  great  Number  of  People, 
who  actually  saw  the  same  With  their  own  Eyes. 

By  Me,  the  Honble  B.  B.  Esq ;  [Joseph  Green].1 

Primo  progrediuntur  anseres,  dein  vituli,  grex  asinaria  sequitur. 
Templum  aditum  est.  Hie  omnibus  vir  sanctus  prcsdicavit,  multis  populis 
circumstantibus. 

Vet.  Leg.  lib.  III.  Cap.  14. 


Boston :  Printed  and  Sold  by  G.  Rogers,  next  to  the  Prison  in  Queen 
street. 


TO    THE    READER. 

COURTEOUS  AND  COVING  READER, 

I  Thought  it  necessary  to  acquaint  thee  with  three  things,  which 
thou  wilt  perhaps,  be  inquisitive  about.  First,  Why  thou  hast  not  had 
the  following  Entertainment  sooner.  Secondly,  Why  it  now  appears 

JOSEPH  GREEN,  born  in  Boston  1706,  graduated  at  Harvard  1726,  became  a  merchant, 
had  some  interest  in  politics,  espoused  the  Royal  cause,  was  exiled,  and  died  in  Kng- 
land  in  1780.  He  had  great  reputation  for  wit,  particularly  in  the  form  of  satirical 
verse.  His  favorite  view  of  things  was  the  facetious  one ;  he  was  convivial  and  hilar 
ious  ;  he  loved  to  mitigate  by  his  waggeries  the  somber  tints  of  life  at  the  Puritan 
metropolis  ;  and  neither  religion  nor  death,  it  was  believed,  could  awe  him  into  gravity, 
as  is  partly  intimated  in  this  epitaph,  which  one  of  his  friends  wrote  for  his  tomb-stone, 
long  before  he  had  need  of  one  : 

"  Siste,  Viator!  here  lies  one, 
Whose  life  was  whim,  whose  soul  was  pun  ; 
And  if  you  go  too  near  his  hearse, 
He'll  joke  you,  both  in  prose  and  verse," 
Tyler,  Hist.  Am.  Lit.  II.  48-49. 


464  APPENDIX. 

abroad  without  sheltering  itself  under  the  Name  of  some  powerful  Patron. 
And  Thirdly,  Why  I  have  given  Myself  the  Title  I  have  assumed  in  the 
Front  of  it. 

As  to  the  first  Article,  thou  must  know,  that  my  great  distance  from 
the  Press,  near  one  hundred  miles,  at  this  difficult  season  of  the  year, 
made  it  impossible  for  me  to  convey  it  there  sooner.  As  to  the  second,  I 
had  fully  determined  to  select  a  number  of  sutable  Patrons,  but  was 
prevented  by  finding  all  of  them  engaged  already ;  not  so  much  as  one 
being  left,  under  whose  wings  this  poor  sheet  might  retire  for  protection. 
Thirdly,  The  title  I  have  taken  to  myself,  sounds  I  confess,  something 
odly.  Nor  indeed  should  I  have  ventured  upon  it,  had  I  not  been  war 
ranted  by  a  Famous  Society  in  an  Example  which  they  have  lately  set  me. 
For  though  this  Society  is,  perhaps,  the  only  one  in  the  world  that  ever 
gave  itself  those  pompous  Epithets,  yet  it  is  allowed  to  be  the  standard 
of  Antiquity  and  Honour.  Of  Antiquity, — as  it  can  boast  an  ^ra 
many  years  higher  than  that  of  the  world.  Of  Honour, — as  it  invested 
with  that  distinguishing  Badge,  which  is,  at  this  day,  the  glory  of  the 
greatest  Potentates  on  earth.  And  if  so,  I  see  no  reason  why  Thou  and 
I  should  not  submit  to  it,  as  the  Standard  of  Propriety  too.  I  am,  I/oving 
Reader,  With  the  greatest  Humility  thine, 

The  HonWe  B.  B.  Esq. 


ENTERTAINMENT  FOR  A  WINTER'S  EVENING. 

O  muse  renown'd  for  story-telling, 

Fair  Clio,  leave  thy  airy  dwelling. 

Now  while  the  streams  like  marble  stand, 

Held  fast  by  winter's  icy  hand  ; 

Now  while  the  hills  are  cloth'd  in  snow ; 

Now  while  the  keen  north-west-winds  blow ; 

From  the  bleak  fields  and  chilling  air 

Unto  the  warmer  hearth  repair : 

Where  friends  in  chearful  circle  met 

In  social  conversation  sit. 

Come,  Goddess,  and  our  ears  regale 

With  a  diverting  Christmas  tale. 

O  come,  and  in  thy  verse  declare 

Who  were  the  men,  and  what  they  were, 

And  what  their  names,  and  what  their  fame, 

And  what  the  cause  for  which  they  came 

To  house  of  God  from  house  of  ale, 

And  how  the  parson  told  his  tale  : 

How  they  return'd,  in  manner  odd, 

To  house  of  ale  from  house  of  God. 


APPENDIX.  465 


Free  Masons,  as  the  story  goes, 

Have  two  saints  for  their  patrons  chose ; 

And  both  Saint  Johns,  one  the  Baptist, 

The  other  the  Evangelist. 

The  Baptist  had  a  Lodge  which  stood 

Whilom  by  Jordan's  ancient  flood. 

But  for  what  secret  cause  the  other 

Has  been  adopted  for  a  brother, 

They  cannot,  and  I  will  not  say, 

Nee  scire  fas  est  omnia. 

The  Masons  by  procession 

Having  already  honour'd  one, 

(Thou,  to  perpetuate  their  glory, 

Clio  did'st  then  relate  the  story.) 

To  show  the  world  they  mean  fair  play, 

And  that  each  saint  should  have  his  day, 

Now  order  store  of  belly-timber 

'  Gainst  twenty-seventh  of  December. 

For  that's  the  day  of  Saint  John's  feast 

Fix'd  by  the  holy  Roman  priest, 

They  then  in  mood  religious  chose 

Their  brother  of  the  roll  and  rose1 

The  ceremony  to  commence  : 

He  from  the  sacred  eminence 

Must  first  explain  and  then  apply 

The  duties  of  Free  Masonry. 

At  length,  in  scarlet  apron  drest, 
Forth  rush'd  the  morning  of  the  feast ; 
And  now  the  bells  in  steeple  play, 
Hark,  ding;  dong,  bell  they  chime  away  ; 
Until,  will  solemn  toll  and  steady, 
The  great  bell  tells — the  parson's  ready. 

Masons  at  church  !  strange  auditory ! 
And  yet  we  have  as  strange  in  story, 
For  saints,  as  history  attests, 
Have  preach'd  to  fishes,  birds  and  beasts, 
Yea  stones  so  hard,  tho'  strange,  'tis  true, 
Have  sometimes  been  their  hearers  too,2 


1  Rev.  Charles  Brockwell,  Assistant  Rector  King's  Chapel,  Boston,  inducted  1747  ; 
died  Aug.  20,  1755. 

8  Vide  Spec.  Exemplar.  Cees.  Dial.  Lib.  IV.  cap.  98.  Benevent  de  Vit.  S.  Franc,  cap.  8. 
Capgr.  Nov.  legend,  Fol.  160.  Anton  Chron.  P.  Ill,  tit.  24,  c.  2,  g  5. 


466  APPENDIX. 

So  good  Saint  Francis,  man  of  grace, 
Himself  preach'd  to  the  braying  race ; 
And  further,  as  the  story  passes, 
Address'd  them  thus — my  brother  asses.1 
Just  so  old  British  Werebtirga, 
As  ecclesiastic  writers  say,2 
Harangued  the  geese,  both  far  and  wide ; 
Just  so  the  geese  were  edify'd. 

The  crowds  attending  gaze  around, 
And  awful  silence  reigns  profound. 
Till  from  the  seat  which  he'd  sat  a  *  *  *  on 
Uprose  and  thus  began  the  parson. 

Right  Worshipful,  at  whose  command 
Obedient  I  in  Rostra  stand ; 
It  proper  is  and  fit  to  show 
Unto  the  crowds  that  gape  below, 
Who  wonder  much,  and  well  they  may, 
What  on  th'  occasion  I  can  say, 
Why  in  the  church  are  met  together, 
Especially  in  such  cold  weather, 
Such  folk  as  never  did  appear 
So  overfond  of  coming  there. 

Know  then,  my  friends,  without  more  pother, 

That  these  are  Masons,  I'm  a  Brother. 

Masons  said  I  ? — yes  Masons  Free  ; 

Their  deeds  and  title  both  agree. 

While  other  sects  fall  out  and  fight 

About  a  trifling  mode  or  rite, 

We  firm  by  Love  cemented  stand, 

'Tis  Love  unites  us  heart  and  hand. 

Love  to  a  party  not  confin'd, 

A  Love  embracing  all  mankind, 

Both  catholick  and  protestant, 

The  Scots  and  eke  New  England  saint : 

Antonio's3  followers,  and  those 

Who've,  Crispin4  for  their  patron  chose, 

And  them,  who  to  their  idol  goose 

Oft  sacrifice  the  blood  of  louse.5 

1  Fratres  Assini,  oreni  vos  ut  sileatis,  nee  inturbetis   Verbum  Dei  quod  sitienti  hinc 
populo  propono.    Wadding,  Annal.  A.  1213,  N.  8.    We  see  he  too  had  a  thrifty  audience. 
3  Frat.  Cress.  Hist.  Ecclcs.  Lib.  xvii.  c.  77. 
3Antonio  is  the  Patron  of  Sailors. 
4Crispin  the  Patron  of  Shoemakers. 
6It  is  conjectured  that  the  Taylors  are  here  meant. 


APPENDIX.  467 


Those  who  with  razor  bright  and  keen, 
And  careful  hand,  each  morn  are  seen 
Devoting  to  Saint  Nicolas1 
The  manly  honours  of  the  face. 
Him  too  who  works,  ah  !  cruel  deed  ! 
The  fatal,  tough  Moscovian  weed  ! 
And  twists  the  suffocating  string 
In  which  devoted  wretches  swing, 
(And  O  may  gracious  Heaven  defend 
The  brethren  from  dishonest  end,) 
Whose  cauldrons  smoke  with  juice  of  Pine, 
An  offering  to  St.  Catharine.2 

O  Pine  salubrious  !  from  thy  veins 
Distills  the  cure  of  human  pains. 
Hail  Sacred  Tree !  3  to  thee  I  owe 
This  freedom  from  a  world  of  woe. 
My  heart  tho'  grateful,  weak  my  strain, 
To  show  thy  worth  I  strive  in  vain. 
Could  Thracian  Orpheus  but  impart 
His  tuneful  lyre  and  matchless  art ; 
And  would  propitious  fates  decree 
Old  Nestor's  length  of  days  to  me, 
That  lyre,  that  art,  that  length  of  days 
I'd  spend  in  singing  forth  thy  praise. 
Still  thou  shall  never  want  my  blessing ;  — 
—  But  to  return  from  thus  digressing. 

Rhode-Island's  differing,  motly  tribes, 
Far  more  than  Alec.  Ross  describes, 
And  light  that's  new  and  light  that's  old, 
We  in  our  friendly  arms  enfold, 
Free,  generous  and  unconfin'd 
To  outward  shape  or  inward  mind. 
The  high  and  low  and  great  and  small, 

F s  P ns  short  and  A n  tall, 

F n — n  as  bulky  as  a  house, 

And  W d  smaller  than  a  louse, 

The  grave  and  merry,  dull  and  witty, 
The  fair  and  brown,  deform'd  and  pretty, 


1  St.  Nicholas  the  Patron  of  Barbers. 

2  St.  Catharine  the  Patron  of  Rope-makers. 

3  The  Pine  was  sacred  to  the  Goddess  Cybele,  who  was  very  skillful  in  Physick,  and 
preserved  men's  lives.    She  no  doubt  drew  her  remedies  from  this  salutiferous  Tree, 
and  perhaps  was  not  unacquainted  with  the  virtues  of  Tar  Water.     Hence  this  tree  was 
held  sacred  to  her  by  the  Ancients. 


468  APPENDIX. 

We  all  agree,  both  wet  and  dry, 

From  drunken  L to  sober  I, 

And  Hugh But  hark,  methinks  I  hear 

One  shrewdly  whisp'ring  in  my  ear ; 
"  Pray,  parson,  don't  affirm  but  prove  ; 
"  Do  they  all  meet  and  part  in  love  ? 
"  Quarrels  oft  times  don't  they  delight  in, 
"  And  now  and  then  a  little  fighting  ? 
"  Did  there  not  (for  the  Secret's  out) 
"  In  the  last  Lodge  arise  a  rout  ? 

"  M with  a  fist  of  brass, 

"  Laid  T 's  nose  level  with  his  face, 

"  And  scarcely  had  he  let  his  hand  go 

"  When  he  receiv'd  from  T a  d d  blow. 

"  Now,  parson,  when  a  nose  is  broken, 
"  Pray,  is  it  friendly  sign  or  token? 

'Tis  true but  trifling  is  th'  objection, 

All  general  rules  have  an  exception. 

Oft  from  themselves  the  best  men  vary, 

Humanum  enim  est  errare, 

But  what  I've  said  I  '11  say  again, 

And  what  I  say  I  will  maintain : 

'Tis  Love,  pure  Love  cements  the  whole, 

Love of  the  Bottle  and  the  Bowl. 

But  'tis  high  time  to  let  you  go 

Where  you  had  rather  be,  I  know : 

And  by  proceeding  I  delay 

The  weightier  business  of  the  day; 

For  eating  solid  sense  affords, 

Whilst  nonsense  lurks  in  many  words. 

Doubting  does  oft  arise  from  thinking, 

But  truth  is  only  found  in  drinking. 

This  having  said,  the  reverend  vicar 

Dismiss'd  them  to  their  food  and  liquor. 

From  church  to  Stone's  they  go  to  eat; 
In  order  walking  through  the  street, 
But  no  Right  Worshipful1  was  there, 
Pallas  forbad  him  to  appear, 
For,  well  foreseeing  that  the  jobb 
Would  from  all  parts  collect  the  mob, 


1  Thomas  Oxnard,  merchant,  Boston,  one  of  the  directors  of  the  "  Silver  Scheme"  to 
offset  the  "  Land  Bank  "  experiment,  1742.  Appointed  Provincial  Grand  Master  vice 
Rt.  Wor.  Tomlinson,  deceased,  Sept.  23,  1743,  and  held  office  until  his  death,  June  26,  1754. 


APPENDIX. 

He  wisely  catch'd  a  cold  and  stay'd 

At  home,  at  least,  if  not  in  bed. 

So  when  the  Greeks  'gainst  Trojans  went, 

Achilles  tarry'd  in  his  tent ; 

Asham'd  he  hides  himself,  nor  draws 

His  conquering  sword  in  harlot's  cause. 

See  B k  before  the  apron'd  throng 

Marches  with  sword  and  book  along ; 

The  stately  ram  with  courage  bold, 

So  stalks  before  the  fleecy  fold, 

And  so  the  gander,  on  the  brink 

Of  river,  leads  his  geese  to  drink, 

And  so  the  geese  descend,  from  gab'ling 

On  the  dry  land,  in  stream  to  dab'ling. 

Three  with  their  white  sticks  next  are  seen, 
One  on  each  side  and  one  between ; 

Plump  L w s1  marches  on  the  right, 

Round  as  a  hoop,  as  bottle  tight, 

With  face  full  orb'd  and  rosy  too  ; 

So  ruddy  Cynthia  oft  we  view, 

When  she,  from  tippling  eastern  streams, 

First  throws  about  her  evening  beams, 

'Tis  he  the  brethren  all  admire, 

Him  for  their  steward  they  require. 

'Tis  he  they  view  with  wondering  eyes, 

'Tis  he  their  utmost  art  defies  ; 

For  though  with  nicest  skill  they  work  all, 

None  of  'em  e'er  could  square  his  circle. 

Next  B r  with  M 1  passes ; 

Though  brothers,  how  unlike  their  faces ! 

So  limners  better  represent 

By  artful  contrast,  what  they  paint. 

Who's  he  comes  next? — 'Tis  P e  by  name,8 

P e  by  his  nose  well  known  to  fame  ; 

This,  when  the  generous  juice  recruits, 
Around  a  brighter  radiance  shoots. 
So,  on  some  promontory's  height, 
For  Neptune's  son's  the  signal  light 
Shines  fair,  and  fed  by  unctuous  stream, 
Sends  off  to  sea  a  livelier  beam. 

But  see  the  crowds,  with  what  amaze 
They  on  the  'pothecary  gaze ! 


469 


1I<ewis  Turner.        *  Pue. 


470  APPENDIX. 

'Tis  he,  when  belly  suffers  twitch, 
Caus'd  by  too  retentive  breech, 
Adjusts  with  finger  nice  and  thumb, 
The  ivory  tube  to  patient's  bum, 

A n  l  high  rising  o'er  the  rest 

With  his  tall  head  and  ample  chest ; 
So  towering  stands  the  tree  of  Jove, 
And  proud  o'erlooks  the  neighbouring  grove. 

Where's  honest  L ke,8  that  cook  from  London, 

For  without  L ke  the  Lodge  is  undone. 

'Twas  he  who  oft  dispell'd  their  Sadness, 
And  fill'd  the  brethren^  hearts  with  gladness. 
For  them  his  ample  bowls  o'erflow'd, 
His  table  groan'd  beneath  its  load ; 
For  them  he  stretch'd  his  utmost  art ; 
Their  honours  grateful  they  impart, 

L ke  in  return  is  made  a  brother 

As  good  and  true  as  any  other, 

And  still,  though  broke  with  age  and  wine, 

Preserves  the  token  and  the  sign. 

But  still  I  see  a  numerous  train  : 
Shall  they  alas  !  unsung  remain  ? 

Sage  H 1  of  public  soul, 

And  laughing  F ks,  friend  to  the  bowl, 

Meek  R half  smother'd  in  the  croud 

And  R who  sings  at  church  so  loud, 

Tall  de  la  R of  Gallic  city, 

Short  B who  trips  along  so  pretty, 

B d  so  truss,  with  gut  well  fed, 

Who  to  the  hungry  deals  his  bread, 

And  twenty  more  crowd  on  my  fancy, 

All  brothers and  that's  all  you  can  say. 

Whene'er,  for  aiding  nature  frail, 

Poor  bawd  must  follow  the  cart's-tail, 

As  through  fair  London's  streets  she  goes, 

The  mob,  like  fame,  by  moving  grows, 

They  should'ring  close,  press,  stink  and  shove, 

Scarcely  can  the  procession  move. 

1  Doctor  Aston.    Apothecary,  Boston,  circa  1738,  died  Aug.  9,  1766,  aged  74  years. 
sl,uke  Vardy  kept  "  Royal  Exchange,"  King  St.,  Boston,  Oct.  17,  1733. 
8  Francis  Johannot,  son  of  Daniel,  born  Nov.  30,  1709,  was  a  distiller  and  a  prominent 
member  of  the  "  Sons  of  Liberty, "  died  Mar.  8,  1775. 


APPENDIX. 

Just  such  a  street-collected  throng 
Guarded  the  brotherhood  along ; 
Just  such  the  noise,  just  such  the  roar 
Heard  from  behind  and  from  before. 
'Till  lodg'dsA.  Stone's,1  nor  more  pursu'd, 
The  mob  with  three  huzzas  conclude. 

And  now,  withdrawn  from  publick  view, 

What  did  the  brethren  say  and  do  ? 

Had  I  the  force  of  Stentor's  lungs, 

A  voice  of  brass,  a  hundred  tongues  ; 

My  tongues  and  voice  and  lungs  would  fail, 

E'er  I  had  finish'd  half  my  tale  ; 

E'er  I  had  told  their  names  and  nation, 

Their  virtues,  arts  and  occupation, 

Or  in  fit  strains  had  half  made  known 

What  words  were  spoke,  what  deeds  were  done. 

Clio,  'tis  thou  alone,  canst  show  'em, 

For  thou'rt  a  Goddess  and  must  know  'em. 

But  now  suppress  thy  further  rhyme, 
And  tell  the  rest  another  time. 
Once  more,  perhaps,  the  apron' d  train 
Hereafter  may  invite  thy  strain, 
Then  Clio,  with  descendent  wing, 
Shall  downward  fly  again  and  sing. 

FINIS. 


471 


1 Journal  of  Capt.  Francis  Goclet  N.  E.  Hist.  Gen.  JRegr.  Vol.  xxiv  p.  jj.  Oct.  5,  7750. 
"  Had  an  Invitation  from  .Several  Brothers  to  vissett  the  Master's  I_odge,  which  is  kept 
at  Stones,  (Tavern,? — ED.)  in  a  very  Grand  Manner.  Mr.  Oxnard  who  is  Provincial 
Grand  Master,  Presided  in  the  Chair,  went  from  thence  at  9  to  Sup  with  Mr.  Chue, 
( Pue  ?— ED.)  who  had  a  Company  Gentn  to  Spend  the  Evening  with  him,  we  had  a  Very 
Grand  Supper  where  Very  merry  and  broke  up  about  3  in  the  Morning. 

October  loth.  •••  *  *  went  to  Mr.  Stones,  where  the  I,odge  was  held  and  Parson 
Brockwell  Presided  in  the  Chair,  and  Mr.  William  Coffin  Mercht  in  Boston  his  Deputy, 
from  thence  to  Capt  Wendells  where  was  a  large  Compy  Gentn  drinking  toast  and  Sing 
ing  Songs,  the  compy  broke  up  at  abt  3  in  the  Morning. 

October  24th.  *  *  *  in  the  Evening  went  to  the  L,odge  with  Nathl  Ferriter,  Capt 
Colvill  or  Lord  Colvil  Capt  of  the  Stationed  Man  of  War,  when  Mr.  Wm.  Coffin  Presided 
in  the  Chair,  from  thence  went  to  Spend  the  Evening  with  Mr.  Thos  Bulfinch  agreeabe  to 
promise  where  found  a  large  compy  gentn  we  Supd  in  a  verry  grand  manner  and  where 
exceeding  Merry  drinking  toast  and  Sing'g  songs  almost  to  3  in  the  Morning  broke  up. 


472  APPENDIX. 

A    MOURNFUL    LAMENTATION   FOR    THE    DEATH   OF 
MR.  OLD  TENORS 


By   JOSEPH    GREEN. 

A  doleful  tale  prepare  to  hear, 

As  ever  yet  was  told  : 

The  like,  perhaps,  ne'er  reach'd  the  ear 

Of  either  young  or  old, 

'  Tis  of  the  sad  and  woeful  death 

Of  one  of  mighty  fame, 

Who  lately  hath  resign'd  his  breath  ; 

Old  Tenor  was  his  name. 

In  vain  ten  thousands  intercede, 

To  keep  him  from  the  grave ; 

In  vain,  his  many  good  works  plead ; 

Alas  !  they  cannot  save. 

The  powers  decree,  and  die  he  must, 

It  is  the  common  lot, 

But  his  good  deeds,  when  he's  in  dust, 

Shall  never  be  forgot. 

He  made  our  wives  and  daughters  fine, 

And  pleased  everybody : 

He  gave  the  rich  their  costly  wine, 

The  poor  their  flip  and  toddy. 

The  laborer  he  set  to  work ; 

In  ease  maintain'd  the  great : 

He  found  us  mutton,  beef,  and  pork, 

And  everything  we  eat. 

To  fruitful  fields,  by  swift  degrees, 

He'd  turn'd  our  desert  land : 

Where  once  nought  stood  but  rocks  and  trees, 

Now  spacious  cities  stand. 

He  built  us  houses,  strong  and  high, 

Of  wood,  and  brick,  and  stone; 

The  furniture  he  did  supply ; 

But  now,  alas !  he's  gone. 

The  merchants  too,  those  topping  folks, 
To  him  owe  all  their  riches ; 
Their  ruffles,  lace,  and  scarlet  cloaks, 
And  eke  their  velvet  breeches. 


1  A  New  England  currency. 


APPENDIX. 

He  launch'd  their  ships  into  the  main, 

To  visit  distant  shores; 

And  brought  them  back,  full  fraught  with  gain, 

Which  much  increased  their  stores. 

Ived  on  by  him  our  soldiers  bold, 

Against  the  foe  advance ; 

And  took,  in  spite  of  wet  and  cold, 

Strong  Cape  Breton  from  France. 

Who  from  that  fort  the  French  did  drive, 

Shall  he  so  soon  be  slain  ? 

While  they,  Alas !  remain  alive, 

Who  gave  it  back  again. 

From  house  to  house,  and  place  to  place, 

In  paper  doublet  clad, 

He  pass'd,  and  where  he  show'd  his  face, 

He  made  the  heart  full  glad. 

But  cruel  death,  that  spareth  none, 

Hath  robbed  us  of  him  too  ; 

Who  through  the  land  so  long  hath  gone, 

No  longer  now  must  go. 

In  senate  he,  like  Caesar,  fell, 
Pierced  through  with  many  a  wound, 
He  sunk,  ah,  doleful  tale  to  tell ! 
The  members  sitting  round : 
And  ever  since  that  fatal  day, 
Oh !  had  it  never  been, 
Closely  confined  at  home  he  lay, 
And  scarce  was  ever  seen, 

Until  the  last  of  March,  when  he 

Submitted  unto  fate  ; 

In  anno  rcgis  twenty-three, 

^ZLtatis  forty-eight. 

For  ever  gloomy  be  that  day, 

When  he  gave  up  the  ghost ; 

For  by  his  death,  oh !  who  can  say, 

What  hath  New  England  lost  ? 

Then,  good  Old  Tenor,  fare  thee  well, 

Since  thou  art  dead  and  gone; 

We  mourn  thy  fate,  e'en  while  we  tell 

The  good  things  thou  hast  done. 

Since  the  bright  beams  of  yonder  sun, 

Did  on  New  England  shine, 

In  all  the  land,  there  ne'er  was  known 

A  death  so  mourn'd  as  thine. 


474  APPENDIX. 

Of  every  rank  are  many  seen, 

Thy  downfal  to  deplore ; 

For  't  is  well  known  that  thou  hast  been 

A  friend  to  rich  and  poor. 

We  '11  o'er  thee  raise  a  silver  tomb, 

Long  may  that  tomb  remain, 

To  bless  our  eyes  for  years  to  come, 

But  wishes,  ah  !  are  vain. 

And  so  God  bless  our  noble  state, 
And  save  us  all  from  harm, 
And  grant  us  food  enough  to  eat, 
And  clothes  to  keep  us  warm. 
Send  us  a  lasting  peace,  and  keep 
The  times  from  growing  worse  ; 
And  let  us  all  in  safety  sleep, 
With  silver  in  our  purse. 


HYMN  BY  REV.  MATHER  BYLES.^ 

Great  God  !  Thy  works  our  wonder  raise, 
To  Thee  our  swelling  notes  belong ; 
While  skies,  and  winds,  and  rocks,  and  seas 
Around  shall  echo  to  our  song. 

Thy  power  produced  this  mighty  frame, 
Aloud  to  Thee  the  tempests  roar ; 
Or  softer  breezes  tune  Thy  name 
Gently  along  the  shelly  shore. 

Round  Thee  the  scaly  nation  roves, 
Thy  opening  hand  their  joys  bestow  ; 
Through  all  the  blushing  coral  grove, 
These  silent  gay  retreats  below. 

See  the  broad  sun  forsakes  the  skies, 
Glow  on  the  waves,  and  downward  slide  ; 
Anon  !  heaven  opens  all  its  eyes, 
And  star  beams  tremble  in  the  tide. 

Each  various  scene,  or  day,  or  night, 
Lord,  points  to  thee  our  ravish'd  soul ; 
Thy  glories  fix  our  whole  delight, 
So  the  touch'd  needle  courts  the  pole." 


IMATHER  BYLES,  a  Boston  divine,  born  1706,  became  a  Royalist,  and  died  in  178 
Was  a  clergyman  noted  for  his  wit,  and  was  prominent  during  his  time  for  his  readiness 
of  repartee,  and  general  jocularity. 


APPENDIX. 


475 


The  singing  of  this  hymn  furnished  Jo.  Greene  with  the  hint  for  the 
following  piece  of  satire : 

"  In  David's  Psalms  an  oversight 
Byles  found  one  morning  o'er  his  tea. 
Alas,  that  he  should  never  write 
A  proper  psalm  to  sing  at  sea? 

Thus  ruminating  on  his  seat, 
Ambitious  thoughts  at  length  prevail'd. 
The  bard  determined  to  complete 
The  part  wherein  the  prophet  fail'd. 


Awhile  he  paused  and  stroked  his  Muse,1 
Then,  taking  up  his  tuneful  pen, 
Wrote  a  few  stanzas  for  the  use 
Of  his  seafaring  bretheren. 

The  task  performed,  the  Bard  content, 
Well  chosen  was  each  flowing  word, 
On  a  short  voyage  himself  he  went, 
To  hear  it  read,  and  sung  on  board. 

What  extasies  of  joy  appear, 
What  pleasures  and  unknown  delights 
Thrilled  the  vain  poet's  soul  to  hear 
Others  repeat  the  things  he  writes. 

Most  serious  Christians  do  aver, 
Their  credit  sure  we  may  rely  on, 
In  former  times  that,  after  prayer, 
They  used  to  sing  a  song  of  Zion. 

Our  modern  parson  having  praj^ed, 
Unless  loud  fame  our  faith  beguiles, 
Sat  down,  took  out  his  book,  and  said, 
'  Let's  sing  a  song  of  Mather  Byles." 

As  soon  as  he  began  to  read, 

Their  heads  th'  assembly  downward  hung. 

But  he  with  boldness  did  proceed, 

And  thus  he  read,  and  thus  they  sung, — 

THE  151st  PSALM. 

With  vast  amazement  we  survey 

The  wonders  of  the  deep, 

Where  mackrel  swim,  and  porpoise  play, 

And  crabs  and  lobsters  creep. 


1  Alluding  to  his  remarkable  fondness  for  a  cat,  which  was  jocosely  called  his  Muse, 
and  on  the  death  of  which  Greene  wrote  an  Elegy. — See  Burton's  Cyclop.  Wit  and 
Humour,  Vol.  i,  p.  4. 


476  APPENDIX. 

Fish  of  all  kinds  inhabit  here, 

And  throng  the  dark  abode  ; 

There  haddick,  hake,  and  flounders  are, 

And  eels  and  perch  and  cod. 

From  raging  winds  and  tempests  free, 

So  smoothly  as  we  pass, 

The  shining  surface  seems  to  be 

A  piece  of  Bristol  glass. 

But  when  the  winds  tempestuous  rise, 
And  foaming  billows  swell, 
The  vessel  mounts  above  the  skies, 
Then  lower  sinks  than  hell. 

Our  brains  the  tottering  motion  feel, 
And  quickly  we  become 
Giddy  as  new  dropt  calves,  and  reel 
Ivike  Indians  drunk  with  rum. 

What  praises  then  are  due  that  we 
Thus  far  have  safely  got, 
Amariscoggin  tribe  to  see, 
And  tribe  of  Penobscot. 


PARODY  BY  MATHER  BYLES. 

In  Byles's  works  an  oversight 

Green  spy'd,  as  once  he  smok'd  his  chunk ; 

Alas  !  that  Byles  should  never  write 

A  song  to  sing,  when  folks  are  drunk. 

Thus  in  the  chimney  on  his  block, 
Ambition  fir'd  the  'stiller's  pate  ; 
He  summoned  all  his  little  stock, 
The  poet's  volume  to  complete. 

I/ong  paus'd  the  lout,  and  scratch'd  his  skull, 
Then  took  his  chalk  (he  own'd  no  pen,) 
And  scrawl'd  some  doggrel,  for  the  whole 
Of  his  flip-drinking  brethren. 

The  task  perform'd — not  to  content — 
111  chosen  was  each  Grub-street  word ; 
Strait  to  the  tavern  club  he  went, 
To  hear  it  bellow'd  round  the  board. 


APPENDIX.  477 


Unknown  delights  his  ears  explore, 
Inur'd  to  midnight  caterwauls, 
To  hear  his  hoarse  companions  roar, 
The  horrid  thing  his  dulness  scrawls. 

The  club,  if  fame  we  may  rely  on, 
Conven'd,  to  hear  the  drunken  catch, 
At  the  three-horse-shoes,  or  red  lion — 
Tipling  began  the  night's  debauch. 

The  little  'stiller  took  the  pint 

Full  fraught  with  flip  and  songs  obscene, 

And,  after  a  long  stutt'ring,  meant 

To  sing  a  song  of  Josy  Green. 

Soon  as  with  stam'ring  tongue,  to  read 
The  drunken  ballad,  he  began, 
The  club  from  clamr'ring  strait  recede, 
To  hear  him  roar  the  thing  alone. 


SONG. 

With  vast  amazement  we  survey 

The  can,  so  broad,  so  deep, 

Where  punch  succeeds  to  strong  sangree, 

Both  to  delightful  flip. 

Drink  of  all  smacks,  inhabit  here, 
And  throng  the  dark  abode  ; 
Here's  rum,  and  sugar,  and  small  beer, 
In  a  continual  flood. 

From  cruel  thoughts  and  conscience  free, 
From  dram  to  dram  we  pass : 
Our  cheeks,  like  apples,  ruddy  be ; 
Our  eyeballs  look  like  glass. 

At  once,  like  furies  up  we  rise, 
Our  raging  passions  swell ; 
We  hurl  the  bottle  to  the  skies, 
But  why,  we  cannot  tell. 

Our  brains  a  tott'ring  motion  feel, 
And  quickly  we  become 
Sick,  as  with  negro  steaks,1  and  reel 
Ivike  Indians  drunk  with  rum. 


1  This,  says  an  original  note  appended  to  the  poem,  alluded  to  what  passed  at  a 
convivial  club  to  which  Mr.  Green  belonged,  where  steaks  cut  from  the  rump  of  a  dead 
negro  were  imposed  on  the  company  for  beef,  and  when  the  imposition  was  discovered 
a  violent  expectoration  ensued. 


478  APPENDIX. 

Thus  lost  in  deep  tranquility, 
We  sit,  supine  and  sot, 
Till  we  two  moons  distinctly  see, 
Come  give  us  t'  other  pot. 


Several  persons  not  living  in  Kentucky,  and  subject  to  "  snakes,"  have 
asked  that  the  following  (omitted  from  the  almanack  for  1771)  be  inserted 
here : 

A  sure  and  certain  Cure  for  the  Bite  of  a  RATTLE-SNAKE,  made  Public 
by  ABEL  PUFFER  0/Stoughton. 

As  soon  as  may  be  after  the  Person  is  bit,  cut  a  Gash  or  Split  in  the 
Place  where  the  Bite  is,  as  deep  as  the  Teeth  went  in  and  fill  it  full  of  fine 
Salt ;  take  common  Plaintain1  and  pound  it,  add  a  little  Water  to  it,  then 
squeeze  out  the  Juice,  and  mix  it  with  clear  Water,  then  make  a  strong 
Brine  with  fine  Salt  and  the  Juice  'till  it  will  not  dissolve  the  Salt,  then 
make  a  Swath  or  Bandage  with  Linen  Cloth,  and  bind  it  round  just  above 
the  swelling  (but  not  too  tight,)  then  wet  the  Bandage  with  the  before 
mentioned  Brine,  and  keep  it  constantly  wet  with  the  Brine,  for  it  will  dry 
very  fast,  &  keep  strokeing  the  Part  with  your  Hands  as  hard  as  the  Patient 
can  bear,  towards  the  Cut  you  made,  and  you  will  soon  see  the  Poison  and 
virulent  Matter  flow  out  of  the  Cut,  arid  it  will  often  flow  so  fast  that  it 
will  swell  below  the  Cut,  and  if  it  should,  you  must  cut  below  the  swelling 
to  let  out  the  virulent  Matter,  and  it  will  not  leave  running  'till  all  is  dis 
charged  ;  you  must  keep  the  Bandage  moving  downwards  as  the  Swelling 
abates.  It  is  proper  to  give  the  Patient  something  to  defend  the  Stomack, 
as  sweet  Oil,  Safron  or  Snake  Root :  It  very  often  bleeds  after  the  Poison 
is  out,  but  be  not  surprized  at  that,  it  is  Good  for  it ;  it  will  run  some  time 
after  the  Poison  is  out ;  there  must  be  care  taken  that  none  of  the  Poison 
that  runs  out  gets  to  any  Sore  or  Raw  Flesh,  for  it  will  Poison  the  Person. 

I  expect  that  some  will  slight  this  Publication,  for  the  Remedies  being 
so  simple  a  Thing,  but  I  hope  no  one  will  so  slight  it,  if  he  is  bit,  as  to 
neglect  trying  the  Experiment,  and  the  Effect  will  prove  what  I  have  said 
to  be  true :  I  should  not  have  published  this,  had  I  not  been  certain  of  its 
performing  the  Cure  by  my  own  Experience  ;  for  I  have  cured  two  Persons 
dangerously  bit,  and  a  Horse  and  Dog,  with  no  other  Thing  But  what  is 
mentioned  in  the  before  Direction ;  and  make  this  Publick  for  the  Benefit 
of  Mankind  ;  tho'  I  have  been  offer'd  a  considerable  Sum  by  some  Persons 
to  make  it  known  to  them,  but  then  it  must  be  kept  as  a  Secret. 

Stoughton,  Oct.  4, 1770.  ABEL  PUFFER. 


1  If  Plaintain  cannot  be  got,  strong  Brine  will  do  the  Thing. 


APPENDIX. 


479 


A  RECIPE  to  cure  the  WHOOPING-COUGH,  which  has  been  tried  with 


Take  dried  Colt's  Foot,  a  good  Handful,  cut  them  small,  and  boil  them 
in  a  Pint  of  Spring  Water,  till  half  the  water  is  boiled  away,  then  take  it 
off  the  Fire ;  when  almost  cold,  strain  it  through  a  Cloth,  squeezing  the 
Herbs  as  dry  as  you  can  ;  throw  the  Herb  away,  and  dissolve  in  the  I/iquor 
Half  an  Ounce  of  brown  Sugar  Candy,  finely  powdered  ;  when  dissolv'd, 
add  to  them  one  spoonful  &  an  Half  of  the  Tinclure  of  Liquorice — of 
which  give  a  Child  five  Years  old  one  Spoonful  three  or  four  Times  a 
Day.  Grown  Persons  may  take  four  Spoonfuls  at  a  Time,  and  as  often. 
It  will  cure  in  two  or  three  Days. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE- 

OW  Tavern..  - - -Frontispiece. 

Almanack  for  1726,  reproduction  four  pages 5678 

"  Regio-Montanus  "  Almanack,  page  from \§ 

View  on  High  Street,  Dedham,  Mass facing  2-1 

The  Tavern  Sign.. !"".T!! ^"facing  25 

Autograph  Letter,  Dr.  Nathaniel   Ames,    ist 37 

Dedham  Historical  Society  Building .. 

Autograph  Letter,  Ezekiel  Price '.""  ^facing  42 

Map  of  Dedham,  ante  1775 ._ facing  44 

Almanack  for  1726,  reproduction  of  title  page facing  46 

"Anatomy"  for  1729,  Ames' Almanack 60 

Title  Page  William  Lilly's  Almanack,  1652. . ._ 7I 

"  Anatomy  "  for  1734,  Ames'  Almanack ...   89 

Earth,  Moon,  and  Mars,  position  of,  June  18,  1749 220 

Autograph  Letter,  Roger  Sherman  _ .   224 

Almanack  Characters,  Signs,  etc 245 

Solar  System    295 

Almanack,  title  page,  1760. ... 7O2 

Almanack,  title  page,  1771 

Emma  Leach  (a  Dwarf) 435 

Dickinson,  John,  Esq.,  Barrister-at-Law 437 

McCaulay,  Mrs.  Catharine _'     438 

Almanack,  title  page,  1773 442 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS,  NAMES,  PLACES,  ETC. 


PAGE.  PAGE. 

A                                                                                       Alexandria 15 
bercrombie 271        Allen,  Bezoune 47 

Abraham 344        Allen,  Gen.  Ethan. 343 

Abrara's  Plain,  (Heights  of  Abraham). .341        Allin,  Rev.  John. 44 

Academy  of  Sciences 1. 322        Almanack  de  Gotha 17 

Acadians ..266        Almanack  1726 5,  6,  7,  8 

Accidents  .450        Almanack,  Characters  in 245 

Acerbus 275        ALMANACKS  IN  GENERAL  ._ IT, 

Actors,  English 31        Almanack  Maker 233 

Adam _ 130       Almanack  Pirates.    311 

Adams,  Rev.  William 44        Almanacks,  price  of 240 

Addison  .. ...21,  235  Almanacks,  price  paid  for  original  copy  359 

Adolphus-Frederick,  King 308        Almanacks,  size  of. 240,  290 

^Ethiopia 378       Almanacks,  spurious 389 

vEtna,  Mt 184        Amariscoggin   476 

Africa  — 378        Amazon 378 

Agriculture 354,  355        A mbrosius 287 

Air 259        Amelia,  Princess 307 

Albany 270        American  Literature,  History  of 12 

Alexander 131        American  Pedigree 448 


482 


INDEX. 


PAGE. 

American  Manufactures 416 

Americus  Vespucius  .  ..  ..266 

Ames,  blank  verse — ---177 

Ames,  death  of,  359 

Ames,  Deborah —  28 

Ames,  decease  of  wife  and  son ...126 

Ames  Diary —  30 

Ames,  Elegy  on. 368,  370 

Ames,  Ellis 28 

Ames,  Estate  of 359 

AMES  FAMILY 23 

Ames'  farewell 460 

Ames,  Fisher... --23,  28,  39,  40,  41,  43 

Ames,  John . 23 

Ames,  John  Worthington 40 

Ames,  Capt.  Nathaniel  (d.  1736) 23 

Ames,  Dr.  Nathaniel  ist  (d.  1764) 28 

Ames,  Nathaniel,  Jr _ _ 28 

Ames,  Dr.  Nathaniel,  Jr.,  first  address  .360 
Ames,  Nathaniel  (ist)  Ode  on  his  death  .109 

AMES,  PROPHECY  OF. 284 

Ames,  Richard 23 

Ames,  Seth 28,  40 

AMES  TAVERN .357 

Ames,  William 23,  28,  35 

Amherst,... 313,  322,  341 

Anatomy 59,  60,  61,  89 

Ancestry ... 144 

Andrews,  Henry 17 

Angels  wings .231 

Anglo-Saxon 16 

Annapolis,  Md. 270 

Annus  tenebrosus ..  . 187 

Apertio  Portarum 120 

Appalachian  mountains 285 

Appeal  to  Arms  (poem  1775) 456,  457,  458 

Appius .419 

Apple  juice.. 294 

APOLOGY 9 

Apothecaries - 421 

Apthprp,  George 33 

Arabians 15,  202,  325,  454 

Arbuthnot,  Dr _ 299 

A rcana  Imperil 273 

Aristotle 119,124,130 

Artiabalipa,  King  of  Peru. 320 

Articles  of  Faith    46 

Arts  and  Sciences 449 

Asia 456 

Aspects 6,  49,  245,  252,  258,  282,  315 

Aston,  Dr. 470 

Astrological  notes 346 

Astrological  predictions.. 347 

Astrology 53,  69,  74,  120,  125,  226,  290,  422 

Astrology,  truth  of 347 

Astronomy 57,  77,  87,  100,  278,  296,  207 

Astro-Theologia, 297 

Atahualpa 323 

Augusta,  Princess 307 

Augustus,  King.. 308 

Aurora  Borealis 75 

Avon   402 

Avon,  Bard  of --449 

Azrail  .115 


Barr,  Duke  of. 
Barrington  ... 
Bath,  wife  of.. 

Battle 

Beausejour. 


B, 


»aal 324 

Babel 157 

Bacchus 441 

Bacon 15,  20,  239,  285,  411 

Baker,  Sarah  B... 12 

Bankrupts 339 

*8ardolph 239 

Barney,  Benjamin 205 


-  - 308 

341 

---- 137 

--- 37 

271,  272,  339 

Beere  Waye 44 

Belcher.. 42,  44,  268 

Bell,  Tom .-.170 

Bellona 460 

Bencoolon 314 

Bengal ..420 

Berlin       . . 308 

Bethlehem... 185 

Beverly,  Mass 436 

Bewill ...170 

Bickerstaff 34,  171 

Bienville-. --404 

Blackguard 443 

Blackmore,58,59,i30, 133, 141, 173/178, 181,  186 

Blackston's  Point 133 

Blackston's  Revival 141 

Blackston,  William 133,  134 

Bliss -.170 

Blunden,  H 71 

Blunt _ 205 

Boerhave 26,  353 

Boies,  James 408 

Boston,  133,  135, 139,  267,  290,  356,  359,  365,  417, 
450,  463,  465,  470. 

Bostonia 185 

Boston  Common  _ 134 

Boston  freeholders  vote 396 

Boston,  (Gen.  Election) 421 

Boston  Gazette 29,  312 

Boston  Massacre 441 

Boston  News  Papers ..  33 

Boston  Selectmen .. ...400 

Boston  Weekly  News  Letter.. ---324 

Bottle  andBowl 468 

Botts   106 

Bounds 170 

Bowel  trouble .326 

Bowen,  Nathan 65 

Bowman ---  31 

Boyd,  M.  Gardner 12 

Boylston,  Dr.  Zabdiel ---139 

Braddock 262,  269,  270,  271,  272,  339 

Bradstreet ---341 

Braintree,  Mass... 23 

Breeches   376 

Breslau 34° 

Bridgewater 23,  50,  185 

Brigdtn.. 19 

Bristol 476 

Bristol,  Eng... 273 

British  Finery.. 457 

British  Museum. 15 

Brockwell,  Rev.  Charles 465,  471 

Brown,  Count 34° 

Brookefield 205 

Bruton-Somerset  (Eng.) 23 

Buell  170 

Bulfinch,  Thomas 471 

Bull,  John 45 

Burdakin,  John  H. 12 

Burton's  Cyclop.  Wit  and  Humour 475 

Bushell,  John 47 

Butler - 21,  70,  240 

Byles,  Mather 474,  475 

Byles,  Mather,  parody  by 476 

Byng  __ — - 273,  340 


,abots 


INDEX. 


PAGE.  PAGE. 

Cczsar - 473        Clough,  Samuel  _ 61 

Caffres  - - 391        Cochvn  China [378 

Cains  Marius n        Coffin,  William. ...471 

Caligula 142,458        Coin,  French 305 

Calomel .181,  186        Coins 320 

Calvin,  John - 108        Coleridge 22 

Cambridge  Commencement 351        Coley,  Henry- 68,  70,  121,  125 

Cambridge,  Mass - 18,19,416        Colson,  Nathaniel   64 

Cambridge,  University  of. 15        Columbus,  Christopher 48,  266,  379 

Camp,  Sickness  in 298        Colvill,  Capt_ 471 

Campbell,  John 82        Comets, effects  of. 67,87,163,165,277 

Campbell,  Major  Donald 351        Commandments,  the „.„ 444 

Cana,  marriage  feast 357        Common  Pleas,  Court  of. 29,42 

Canaan 344        Commonwealth  (Eng.) 70 

Canada,  262,  263,  269,  271,  276,  285,  309,  313,  342        Connecticut 10,  222,  223,  270,  290,  3127370 

Canadensis 199        Congregational  Church 44 

Canadians 327        Congressional  Record n 

Canker 186        Conjunction  Saturn  and  Jupiter 151 

Cape  Breton 192,  267,  270,  340,  473        Coujuration 198 

Cape  Fear 268        Conscience- 450 

Cape  Good  Hope 198        Constantine  _. 185 

Cape  Horn. 204        Constantinople 308,  454 

Captivity 15        Continental  Congress ---43,  437 

Carisbrooke  Castle 70        Contrecoeur ---339 

Carlos  III,  King 308        Convers,  Dr.  _ 31 

Caroline,  Matilda „ --.307        Cook.. 170 

Caroline,  Queen  .   --.307        Copenhagen  _ 308 

Cartesius 119,  124        Copernican  Theory 92,  113 

Carthage  .- n,  313        Coquetilla 449 

Carthaginians 343        Cornelius  Agrippa 199 

Catholics 403        Cornwall.   70 

Cato 31,  235,  457        Court,  Judgment  of ....215 

Ceciiba • 419        Court,  Supreme,  Mass 24 

Celestial  \Vorlclsdiscovered 297        Crapulcz 366 

Celsus  .. . ...,. 265,  349        Creation,  The 90,  256 

Cervantes   363        Crevelt ..340 

Chaldees... 15,  130        Cromwell  (ians) 195,  264 

Charles-Emanuel,  King 308        Croswell 170 

Charles-Frederick,  King 308        Crown  officers  _ 398 

Charles.  King 195        Crown  Point. 267,  270,  271,  272,  341,  342 

Charles  I 70,  439,  456        Cuckolds 139,  412 

Charles  II 17        Culloden  . .       45,  200 

Charles  IX 287        Cumberland,  N.  Y.,  Co.  of 34 

Charles  River. ---259        Cumberland,  Duke  of 45 

Charlestown,  Mass 36        Cumberland .339 

Charlestown,  S.  C 268     ^  Currency 46,  150,  217 

"Charlie  Over  the  Water"... 45     --Currant  wine 315,  324,  332 

Chatham,  Earl  of  _ 37        Gushing,  John 25 

Chaucer 169        Cybele 467 

Chauncey   19        Customs  of  Nations 391 

Cheever 19,  43 

Cherbourg.         341  T~\ 

Chester,  N.  Y.  (East?) 35        JUaboll,  Nathan n 

Cheyne 100,  237,  238,  239,  278,  279,  321        Dacia,  Petrus  de 15,  59 

Children's  Hospitals.. 333        Dan,  tribe  of.        - 229 

China       273        Dana,  Edmund  — - 33 

Chinese 455        Danforth 18 

Chloe.. 410        Daniel 185 

Christ  -  -     185,378        D'Anville,  Duke - 345 

Christ,  Philos    .  213        Daughters  of  Liberty 457 

Chronology 185        Daun ...340,341 

Chronos  .  138        D 1.  (Davenport) 168 

Chue 47i        Davenport - -.170 

Church  of  England 180,  303        David's  Psalms - 475 

Cimbrians 4*9        Day  Nurseries —  -333 

Cimex  lectularius n        Daye,  Stephen « 

"Cincinnati".  46        Dean,  John  Ward -  12 

Circassia 453        Declaration   of  Independence 37,  438 

Clark,  Rev.  Mr" ...... 30  Dedham,  12,  20,  132,  133,  184,  259,290,  297,  303 

Clark,  Mr 356  332,  335,  355,  358,  446 

Clergymen. _.  ._. 362        Dedham,  Episcopal  Church 30 

Clermont    "  340        Dedham,  History  of 24 

Cleveland    61  135        Dedham  Historical  Register 29,  30 

Clifford,  Govcrnor"IIIIIIIIIIIIJIIIIIIII  4°  Dedham  Historical  Society,  12,30,38,39,461 


484 


INDEX. 


DEDHAM,  TOWN  OF --  23 

DeFoe... --.  20 

Delaware -- 438 

Democratic  Cake -  36 

Denisoii .170 

Denmark.. 308 

Derham  -- ..100,  101,  113,  114,  162 

Detroit ---- ---351 

Deus  nobis  haec  Otia  fecit --215 

Devil ...198 

Devil's  Child 443 

Deviltry - -- 456 

Devotion 177 

Dexter,  Samuel 23,  33,  44 

Dialogue 193 

Diary 232 

Diary  of  Nath.  Ames 30 

Dickinson,  John 437,  441 

Dictionary. -.. 383 

Dieskau,  Baron 271,  272,  339 

Diet -.260 

Diet,  regimen  of -.. 278 

Dighton  Rock 343 

Dinwiddie,  Robert 268 

Diodorus  Siculus --131 

Discourse,  political 417 

Dobbs,  Arthur -.268 

Doctors 116 

Dollars 240 

Dollars,  Spanish  milled 308 

Douglass,  Dr.  William 139 

Douglass,  Mass 140 

Douglass... 141 

Draper,  33,  47,  103,  109,  116,  125,  133,  142,  151, 
159,  171,  179,  187,  195,  201,  208,  215,  225,  233, 
241,  248,  255,  262,  274,  280,  289,  302,  313,  323, 
333,  346,  359,  360,  365,  442,  447,  452. 

Drummer,  a  play 31 

Drought  and  Scarcity 334 

Dryden,  21,  142,  143,  151,  173,  209,  234,  240, 
242. 

Dudley.., 19 

Dudley,  Paul 24,25 

Duck,  Stephen 126,  132 

Du  Pratz.. 404 

Du  Quesne,  Fort 270,  272,  341 

Dwarf 435 

Dwights  brook 42 


Earthquake 290 

Kast  Indies 314,  329 

Eclipses.. 7,  33,  34,  57,  68,  79,  241,  363,  377,  379 

Edentown 268 

Edes  &  Gill,  33,  34,  302,  313,  323,  333,  346,  360, 
442,  447,  452. 

Edinburgh,  Scot... 45 

Edward  Augustus 307 

Egypt 333,  345 

Egyptians 15 

Election,  Boston 421 

Electricity,  discoveries  in... 347 

Eliot,  Mr 383 

Elizabeth,  Czarina _ 341 

Elizabeth,  Empress ...308 

Elizabeth,  Queen 268,  320 

Elliott.... 341 

Ellsworth.. 370 

Elvendene,  Walter  de 16 

Endicott,  John .137 

England...  181,  184,  185,  339,  340,  378,  455,  459 

English  Courts 388,  389 

England,  History  of. 383,438 

English  Malady.. 239 


\  PAGE. 

Entertainment   for  a  Winter's   Evening, 
123,  463,  464. 

Epicurus 118,  124 

Erse 15 

Esperies 184 

Essay  on  Man 240 

Esterling  money 320 

Etiam  niortuus  loquitur 248 

Etmuller .. 181 

Etrc'es 340 

Euclio ..136 

Euroclydon 130 

Europe  _ 15,  203,  285 

Exercise 260 

Experientia  docet 229 


JT  alerna 419 

Fame,  temple  of 208 

Farmer,  the  contented 318 

Fashion ...  305,  306 

Fayerweather 33 

Felicity  (personified) 430 

Ferdinand   340 

Ferriter,  Nath'l 471 

Fevers 326 

"Fifth  Ward  Hotel,"  N.  Y.  City 38 

Fire  Worshippers    166 

Fisher 12,  23,  24,  28,  41 

Fisher  Ames  Eltn 358 

F sk._ 139 

Fitch,  Thomas 267 

Fixed  stars. 125,  298 

Flainiuius... 419 

Flanders 208,  267,  356 

Flax 342 

Flax  Seed 335,  356 

Fleeming,  J._ 371 

Fleet— printer,  34,  289,  302,  313,  323,  333,  346, 

360,  442,  447,  452. 

Fools'  Paradise.. ^ 295 

Fool  in  Sleeve 339 

Forbes 341 

Foreign  Commodities 397 

Forrest 340 

Fort  du  Quesne-..- 339 

Fort  St.  Phillip ---34O 

Fortune ---381,  449 

Foster.. 19 

Foudroyant,  le 340 

Fountains  and  Springs 184 

Fowl  Meadow 355 

France,  181,  200,  205,  262,  272,  285,  287,  308, 

339,  342,  473, 

Francis  Stephen,  Emperor 308 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  19,  20,  21,  31,  257,  261, 


343,347,  357,420. 
inklin, 


Franklin,  James.. 20 

Frederick  the  Great-. 123 

Frederick,  King 308 

Frederick,  Prince  of  Wales 307 

Frederick-William 307 

Free  Masonry ..116,  122,  207,  465 

Freneau,  Philip 358 

Friendsh  ip .449 

Frontenac 341 

Fryeburg Io8 

Full  Communion ---443 

Fudderal  Pan  Cake 37 

Funeral  cu stoms 397 

Future  destiny 336 


falen... 95,  213 


INDEX. 


PAGE-  PACK. 

Galileo ..132  Henry  II.. 

Gallows  and  Scaffolds-. 191  Hcraclius 

Ganzas 115,  214  Herodotus 

Gardinier,  Dr ---356  Hesperian 

Gatchell,  Increase- 28  Hesperus 

Gay's  Tavern ---42,  123  Hildreth,  H.  O 

Gaza ..311  Hill,  Don  Gleason!!" 

Gazette,  Boston 29,  312  Hindus  . 

Gazetteer,  Salmon's ---383  Hippocrates 

Geography... 383  HISTORICAL"!!"" 

George  I 56,454        History  of  American  Literature Jh 

George,  Lake 270  History  of  Printing  .. 

George,  Prince  of  Wales 307  Hob  or  Nob 

George  II. ...55,  58,  119,  239,  302,  307,  308,  341  Home  production 

George  III 37,  313,  323,  332,  341,  351        Homer !! 

Georgia ..266,  268,  269,  344,  382  Honesty  .. 

Germany 285,308  Hopkins,  Stephen..  "!                              "267 

Gerould,  Dr.. 26  Horns.. 

Gibbs  and  Wansley,  pirates... n  Hornsmiths  . 

Gill 33        Horse,  Dr "S 

Glassychord  ..... 347        Hot  day,  June  18,. 1749 "_"."  220 

Goelet,  Capt.  Francis,  diary 471  Hottentot                                                       ~\6-j 

Gold,  weight  and  value  of 307  ^ouse  of  Entertainment"' 

Golden  Age... 440,443        How(e) ""'_.      ""siVaS 

Good  Hope,  Cape  of ..391        Hubbard,   Mother ..288 

Goree    34I        Hudibras..  .   70,  209,  214,  234*240 

Government,  Essay  on — 45<>  Hudson's  Bay    . 

Greece.. 410  Huggins  (Huygens  ?)  ...                          "   101 

Greeks 15,469        Hugh !       ""467 

Green,  B....5,  47,  51,  55,  59,  65,  70,  76,  83,  103        -  Human  Understanding" 

Green,  Joseph 123,463,472,475,477        Hungary 184  708 

Greenland 391        Husbandry,  Rules  for ./.        369 

Greenleaf,  Sheriff  ... 33        Hussy.. ..   204 

Green  &  Russell,  289,  302,  313,  323,  333,  346,        Hutchins  Farmers  Almanack !!!!    9 

360.  Huvgens 113  297 

Green,  Samuel 18,47  Hybernians...                                              "    42o 

Green,  Timothy 312        Hybla ~     728 

Greenwood,  Mr.. 25        Hymettus 

Gregorian  Calendar... 239,  247,  248 

Grenoble 184  T 

Grenville 32         1 1  193 

Grissippo  433  Iceland  ...!'..!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!                   !!!i84 

Grub  Street 477        Ides  of  March 346 

Guadalaxara 184       fern's  Fatuus 188 

Guadaloupe... 341        India 325,  428 

Guild,  John  F 12        Indian  Dialect .66 

Guinea.. 341        Indians 182,  204,  343,  388,  404,  478 

Guinne ...184        Infants,  care  of. 330 

*Sun  Powder  Plot  ...99,  102,  115,  132,  163,  175        Inoculation 453 

Guy  Fawkes 222        Inscription  over  Chimney  Piece 448,  451 

Intemperance,  art  of --.238 

H                                                                                      Inverness 200 
ales,  Dr ...322,331        Ireland 341 

Halifax,  Nova  Scotia 47        Irish 15 

Hammond 363        Iron  works.. 408 

Hanover 195,  340,  438        Island  of  Tranquil  Delights 461 

Hardy,  Sir  Charles 267        Israelites 14 

Harli  treeve 169        Italy 267 

Harvard..,. 185,463 

Harvard  College.. 18,372,379  T 

Harvey. _ 415        Jack  Frost. 244 

Havannah. 336,342        "Jack  Pudding"...  288 

Haven 37        Jackson,  Mr 408 

Haven,  address  of. 43       Jacob,  Seed  of. 308 

Haven,  Reverend 44       Jamaica 379 

Havre  de  Grace 341       James,  I        17 

Health  and  Long  Life 239       Jarchus,  .Solomon. 15 

Hector 185       Jehovah  and  Jupiter 362 

Hemiptera ir        Jenner,  Dr 460 

Hempen  Cravats 319       Jersey 271 

Henchman,  Daniel 356       Jesus  Christ 185 

Henrietta,  Queen ---459       Jews 15 

Henry  VIII 415,  443        Joan 218 

Henry— Frederick 307       Johannot 47° 


486 


INDEX. 


PAGE. 

Johnnades,  Zechariah .131 

"Johnnie  Cope  " 45 

Johnson 214,  270,  272,  339,  341 

John  W - 10 

Jokes  and  jokers . --443 

Jordan's  flood ---465 

Joseph,  King 308 

Josephus 378 

Joshua,  and  the  Sun 93 

Julian  year 246 

Julius  Ccesa  r 247,  346 

Junpnville   339 

Jupiter  and  Lady  Venus 183 

Juvenal _ 234,  240 


Lyon  and  Unicorn 
Lynde,  Benjamin.. 
Lynne,  Nicolas  de. 


.420 
-  2s 


M, 


K. 


Lamschatka --39* 

Keith 341 

Kent,  England 438 

Kentuckjr 422,  478 

Kepler 221 

Kindrick 170 

Kneeland 311 

Knight,  Madam 42 


cAlpine  -. 33,  371,  381,  389,  400 

McCaulej',  Catherine 438,  441 

McDougall,  Lieut 351 

Macauley,  Dr.  George _ 438 

Macauley,  T.  B 438 

^Madeira 267,  324,  421,  422,  443 

Madrid  308 

Magellan 204 

Magicians 199 

Malabar ---457 

Manure 355 

Marcy,  Colo.. 232 

Marlborough.. 340,  341,  353 

Marie ...     . 355 

Maria  Theresa,  Queen 308 

Marriage 449,  450 

Marriage  Ceremony 420 

Martin,  Aaron 232 

Martin,  Melatiah .167,  168 

Martinico 341 

L                                                                                        Maryland 268,  270,  437 
adies,  Definition  of  _ 450        Mary,  Princess 307 

Ladies,  unmarried 249        Masonry 116,  207 

Ladies,  page  for „ 328        Massachusetts 267 

Lake  Erie 339        Massachusetts  Bay 133,  240,  290,  308 

Lake  George 301,340        Massachusetts  Mistorical  Society 43 

Lalande 15        Massachusetts  Hospital  Life  Ins.  Co.  ..  38 

Lancashire 184        Massachusetts  Medical  Society 29 

Land  Bank 468       Massagetes ---419 

Land  Title  of  Colonies. 344        Mather 19,  25,  46,  87,  88,  107,  108,  213 

Lapland 391,  424        Maurice,  Prince 132 

Law  - _ 449        Maynard,  J.  P. 30 

Lawful  Money i .307,308        Mecca 428 

Law,  John 45        Mecaenus,  advice  of ..     65 

Lawrence,  Charles 266        Medical  advice _ 237 

Lawyers  _ . . 1 1 6        Medicine 416 

Lay  Pretenders 363,  370        Medicine  and  Health 240 

Leach,  Emma 436,441        Meiii  (Printer) 34 

Lee,  Samuel ---105,  108        Mercer... 271,  272 

Legiboli 391        Mercurius  Dulcis 181 

Letnnian 432        Me.rcurius  Novanglicanus 139 

Leviathan 147        Mercurj^ 121,  122,  321 

Lewis  XV,  King   308        Mercury  (Live  Silver) _ ...326,  332 

Lexington,  action  at 36        Mercury,  transit  of.. _ 241 

Lex  talionis 269        Merlin 287,  288 

Leyden 139        Merry  Mount 135,  137 

Libert}7 365        Metcalf,  Theron 40 

Licensed  victuallers 345        Metonic  Cycles .. 17 

Lilly,  William .70,  71,  121,  125        Microscope,  Essay  on 146 

Linacre 415        Middleboro .131 

Lippincott,  Biog.  Diet 438        Militan^  Affairs,  Preference  in ...269 

Lisbon   308        Milky  Way  (poem).. 156 

Lissa 340        Milton. 21,  171,  188,  295,  363,  402,  408,  409 

Littleton,  William 268        Milton,  Mass .. 26,43,356,373 

Locke 325,  402,  408,  418,  450        Milton  paper  mill --S9& 

London,  Eng.,  18,  185,188,308,333,415,418,        Minorca 273,274,340 

438,470.  Misfortunes ..'. 449 

Lorrain,  Duke  of _ 308        Mississippi 270,285,404 

Lost  tribes  of  Israel 343        Modern  Saints 367 

Loudoun,  Lord 271        Momus ...207 

Louisa-Ann 307        Monckton 266 

Louisbourg 192,  200,  261        Money  (June) .210 

Louisiana 404        Monongahela. 263,  339 

Lovell 1 86        Mons 184 

Lovewell 186        Montagu,  Lady  Wortley ---454,  455 

Low,  (Nathaniel). 34,  359        Montcalm 340,  341 

Ludd ... ---185        Montreal 272,  341 

Luxury 366        Moon,  Rising  and  Setting  of. 334 

Lycurgus 458        Moore,  Francis 17 


INDEX. 


487 


More,  C.,  Almanack  of 269 

Morning  Drams 171 

Morning  Glory - 178 

Morris,  Robert  Hunter .. 268 

Morton,  Thomas 135,  136 

Moses.. - 14,  130,  131,  164 

Mount  Dagon 137 

Mount  Vernon 438 

Mulberry  trees 384,  400 

Mtimford 34 

Minister 341 

Muscovian  Weed - 328 


N, 


.66,  69, 
---33,  i 


iamasket  River 

Narraganset 

Natchez  _ - 404 

Nation,  how  ruined  and  reformed 444 

National  Debt- - 45 

Navigator  _ 450 

Nazrow,  Mrs 31 

Necromancers 199 

Negro  Steak . 478 

Neoera . . . ...410 

Neponset  River 259,  355 

Nestor 467 

Newcastle - 184 

New  England,  133,  185,  226,  261,  266,  344,  456, 

466,  473. 

"  New  England  Almanack" 61 

New  England  Hist.  Geneal.  Society  12,  471 
New  England  Jour,  of  Med.  and  Surg. . .  140 
New  England,  settlement  and  increase 

of. - 342 

Newfoundland 270,  342,  378 

New  Halifax 219 

New  Hampshire. ..267 

New  Haven - 312 

New  Jersey . 267 

New  Lights 167 

New  London 312 

New  Milford 223,  224 

Newport,  R.  I._ 31 

"News  Letter,"  Boston 82 

"New  Stile" ---234 

New  Tenor 150 

Newton,  Sir  Isaac,  87,  88,  140.  141,  221,  402, 

408,  411. 

New  York 267,  269,  271,  290,  333,  342 

Niagara 270,  271,  272,  341 

Nice,  Council  of 246,  247 

Nixon,  the  Cheshire  prophet 288 

Noah... 357 

Nodes...   -. 6,49 

Non-Importation. 397 

Norfolk  'Mass.)  Co.  of. ....    .    29 

North  America,  past,  present  and  future 

state  of... 284 

North  Carolina.. 268 

Norway — --- 383 

Nostradamus,  Michael 287 

Nova  Scotia 266,  271,  284,  344 

Nova-Zembla 39 1 

Nuremburg 17 

Oakes   18 

Oebalia 428 

Ohio 270,  272,  284,  292,  301,  339,  341,  402 

Old  Moore's  Almanack 17 

"Old  Nick" -. 346 

-OLD  TAVERN 

Old  style  ceases 239 


I'  A',1. 

Old  Tenor,  25,  46,  150,  218,  222,  225,  232,  233, 

240,  244,  248,  255,  307,  308,  314. 
Old  Tenor,  lamentation  for  th-j  di-ath  of.472 

Oliver,  Mr.. 

Ontario,  Lake 271,340 

Orphan,  a  play 32,467 

Or  pli  L-C 340 

Osborn 340 

Osman,  Sultan 308 

Oswego... 271,  272,  273,  274,  340 

Oxallana 402 

Oxford,  ( University  of is 

Oxford,  (Eng.) i'> 

Oxford...    .     416 

Oxiiard,  Thomas 468,  471 


\  adolia 184 

*age  for  the  Gentlemen 352 

Pallas  469 

Palmer,  Thomas _ 33 

Panthea - 187 

Papal  Power 309 

Paper  making 356,  357 

Paper  manufacture 373 

Paper  money - 204 

Paper  rags  .". 398,  408,  409 

Paris ---139,  3°8,  39 1 

Parker 217,  222 

Parker,  J.  &  Company 312 

Parliament 441 

Parnassus 324 

Partridge,  John 80,81,82,  248,449 

Pennsylvania 268,  285,  356,  414,  438 

Penobscot 4/6 

Pepperell 270 

Perry,  Hon.  Amos 12 

Persecutor's  Hell - 192 

Persia 325,453,454 

Perspiration,  doctrine  of- 349 

Peru. - - 323,  378,  428 

Peter,  Saint 10 

Petersburg  (St.)  . 3°8,  3H 

Petersham - 205 

Peter  III,  Emperor  of  Russia.. 341 

Petrus  de  Dacia --- 15,  59 

Pettyfoggers -- - 362 

Pharoah 345 

Philadelphia - 268,  333,  342,  419 

Philip,  King 185 

Phoenix,  John 59 

Phrenix 43°,  431 

Physick,  Essay  on 4T3 

Pierce,  William 's 

Pillar  of  Fire H 

Pillar  of  Liberty.. 37,  38 

Pimps 443 

Pismires -  J88 

Pitt's  Head ...     40 

Pitt,  William 37,38? 

Plague  in  London 181 

Planets 6,  49,  113,  245,  297 

Plutarch 

Plymouth - '85 

Plymouth,  Mass. 136 

Poem,  stray  (Ames) 221 

Poet,  precocious 225 

Poland 184,285,308 

Pollok's  Course  of  Time 115 

iMward 6l 

Pondicherry  3!4 

Pontiac 351 

Poor  Richard - 'M 

Poor  Richard's  Almanack 19 


488 


INDEX. 


PAGE.  PAGE. 

Poor  Robin  (Almanack) 75        RISE  OF  THE  ALMANACK 18 

Pope,  Alex'r,  21,  81,  133, 141,  180,208,  214,  235,        Robie,  Thomas 19 

236,362,363.  Rochefort   --.340 

Pope  (of  Rome) --i39>  170,  382,  422,  440        Rochefoucauld 20 

Population,  estimate  of. ---344        Rogers,  G 463 

Porsenna   422.423        Rogue's  March . 45 

Porteous,  Capt.  John .. _".  45        Roman  Father  (a  play) 31 

Porte,  Sublime 454        Romans 261 

Portugal 267,  308        Roman  soldiers.- 300 

Post,  Boston  Evening 28        Rome   185,410 

••Post  Roads. .. 379        Rosbach 340 

Potash 383,  384        Ross,  Alec 467 

Powder  plot.. 192,  219,  390        Roxbury   370 

Prague.. 340        Royal  Ark  Mariners  ... 357 

Presbyteiian 139     Nloyal  Exchange ---47° 

Press  gangs _ --403        Royal  family 307 

Preston 440        Royal  Society.. 322 

Pretender. 45        Rum 238,367 

Price,  Ezekiel 42        Rush 32 

Price,  Henry 123        Russel  Colvin  Miracle n 

Priests 116        Russell 289 

Prince  Charlie 194        Russell,  Ezekiel 35,  436 

Printing,  invented 185        Russia 308,  383,  422,  434 

Printing,  History  of 289        Rusticus 385 

Prockter   170        Rusticus  on  Rats... ---45i 

Prosinda. 427 

Prostitutes 448  O 

Protection -  -332        Oabsea J .428 

Providence,  R.  I... 12,  267        Sabbath  Day's  Journey  _ 323 

Provinces,  account  of 266        Sacrament,  Lake ...270 

Province  Laws 24        St.  Antonip 466 

Prussia 308,  340        St.  Catharine 467 

Prussia,  King  of 456        St.  Crispin. 466 

Psalm  XC 254        St.  Evremonde 458 

Psalm  CLI  -- 476        St.  Francis 124,  466 

Ptolemy... 79,  121,  125        St.  Helena 314 

Pue  _ 124,469,470        St.  John 465 

Puffer,  Abel. 422,  478,  479        St.  Lawrence.- 270,  272 

Punch 319,  352,  353,  354        St.  Maloes -.340 

Purgatory   152,  254        St.  Nicolas 467 

Puritans 122,  135        St.  Omers 184 

Pynson,  Richard 17        St.  Peter,  Abbe  de 418 

Pyramids 15        St.  Pierre,  M  de 270,  271 

Pythagoras    no        St.  Remy 287 

Salem,  Mass 19 

QSaltonstall,  Richard 25 
uack  doctors 361        Salvation 336 

Quaker... 139,  303,  312        Samson  ..  185 

Quebeck 200,  272,  308,  341        Sardinia. 3°8 

Queen  Anne's  War 266        Saturn,  poem  on_ 207 

Queen  Bess 450        Saunders,  Richard 19 

Savilian  Library,  Oxford. 15 

R                                                                                   Saviour's  birth 307 
abelais 20,  22        Sawbridge 438 

Rags 356        Saxe  Gotha 307 

Raleigh,  Sir  Walter 268        Saxony --34°,  45° 

Ralph  and  Will,  a  dialogue 152        Saybrook,  Conn 19 

Ralph  Reason  Right 154        Scalping  Knife 33s 

Rape  of  the  Lock 81        Scholar  and  Clown 193 

Rattle  Snake  bite ....422,  478        Scotland 139,  184,  246 

Red  Sea 378        Schuyler 271 

Reformation,  the... .443        Seekonk ---T35 

Regimen,  Essay  on 249,  253,  259        Senate - ---457 

Regio-Montanus .. 16,  17        Senator - 45° 

Regular  troops 398        Seneca - - I31 

Religion . 450        Senegal   34° 

Religious  Disputes 176        Senses,  the  five 3l6,  3*7 

Restoration 70        Separatists ---205 

Revenge,  a  play 31        Sessions,  Court  of... 29,42 

Reynolds,  John 269        Sewall,  Stephen _. 25 

Rhode 184        Sextons    - -367 

Rhode  Island 121,  135,  267,  290,  467        Shakspeare 69,  402,  408 

Rhode  I.  Hist.  Socy 12        Sharpe,  Hon.  Horatio - 268 

Richardson,  James 40        Shawmut 133 


INDEX. 


4<S9 


PAGE. 


Sheapheard's  Kaleudar 17        Sun  Time 

Shenstone ..363  Supreme  Court  (Mass.)!! 

Shepard ....170        Surgery "416 

Sheppard,  John 45        Sweden 

Sherman,   Roger 222,223,224        Swift 20,  80,  81 ,  "sV'tfh  AAQ 

Shipton,  Mother ...288        Swivel-tailed  Marines 

Shirley... 158,  192,  263,  267,  269,  270  Sword  and  Ploughshare  .. 

Shuttleworth 30,  38  Sydenham  ... 

Siberia 314 

Sickness  in  Camp 298  T"* 

Sidrophel 70  I  ancred  and  Sigismunda,  a  plav    .        -u 

v  Sign  of  The  Law  Book" 41        {Tavern  Keepers 335 

'*4»Sign  of  the  Sun" 229,239        ITaverns "165 

Signs 49,245      (Tavern  sign .."'.  24166 

Signs  and  Planets 315       {Tavern  slander 

Signs  Discontented,  poem 459       [Tea  - - 329,  332", 7aS,~457 

Signs  of  Zodiac 6       'Tea  drinking 140 

Silk  culture 389        Tea,  East  India 4=0 

Silk  manufacture 384        Tellus 

Silk  worms 384,  407        Temple  of  Fame "  Voc i  214 

Silver  currency 328        Tennant. 170 

Silver  scheme ..468        Terra  Canadensis  _ "226 

Silver,  value  of 307        Thacher,  Samuel ""...."" ".'.'..  171 

Sir t'us .189         Thales .1-1 

Skilling ---37        Thanks  from  Gaols .     -578 

Slitting  Mill... 408        Thatcher '170 

Small-Pox ---314,  320,  452,  460        Thompson 246,  247 

Smollett 391,  399        Thomson 21 

Snuff.. 252,  353        Throat  Distemper ---"253 

Socrates 458        Thurott  (Thuriot  ? 341 

Solar  Time 246       -Ticonderoga 340,  341 

Soldiers,  Roman 300        Time  (personified) 434 

Solar  System. -. 206,  295        Titcomb 264,  269 

Solomon  Jarchus 15        Tit/ion 456 

Somers,  John 16        Tobacco 352,353 

Sons  of  Liberty. 37,  470        To-day  and  To-morrow _ ....201 

Sons  of  Malta 366        Tomlinson 468 

Sons  of  Urania... 63        Tooth-ach 450 

Sorcerers 199        Trecothick,  Alderman 

South  Carolina 121,  268        Trojans 469 

South  Carolina,  Courts ...81,  92        Troy 185 

South  Church 134        Tryon 440 

Southcott,  Joanna 288        Tully,  John 19 

South  Sea  Bubble 45        Turin 308 

Spain 15,  181,  186,  267,  308,  336,  341        Turkey 308,  453,  454 

Spaniards ...269        Turks 173,  402 

Spaniels 449        Turner,  Lewis. 469 

Spanish  milled  dollars 240        Turpin,  Richard 45 

Spanish  Silver... _. 333       Tweed,  river 190 

Spectator 176,  177,  243        Tyber,  river 418 

Spleen 440        Tyburn 45,  268 

Sprague,  Dr 31        Tyburnians 420 

Spurina 346  Tyler,  Prof.  Moses  Coit..  12,  20,  108,  122,463 

Stages 379 

Stamp 377  TT 

Stamp  Act 32,  37,  38,  372,  380,  387        Ulme 16 

Standish,  Capt... 137        Urania. 

Stanislaus,  King.. ...308        Urania,  Bont  of. 63,  65 

Star  in  the  East 422        Utrecht,  treaty  of. 266 

Stars,  Morning  and  Evening 316 

Stationers,  Company  of 71  \J 

Steele 20         V  anity 45° 

Sterns,  Sam     34        Vardy,  Luke 47° 

Stiles,  Rev.  Ezra.. 343        Vaux-Hall --.230 

Stimson,  Fred.  J 39        Venus,  Transit  of 34,  314 

Stockholm 308        Vesuvius,  Mt. 184 

—Stone's  (tavern). 468,  471        Vermont 343 

Stoughton,  Mass 478,  479        Verrazani 

Stowel,   Thaddeus 34  Victory,  invocation  to... 

Stuart,  James 45         l'iaa 4°7 

Styles,  Mr 343        Vienna _ 3°8 

Suffolk  Co.,  Mass 42         Vi  et  armis 244 

Suffolk  resolutions. 43        Vineyards 

Sumner,  Seth 26        Vintners 


490 


INDEX. 


PAGE. 

Virgil- 214,  242 

Virginia 268,  270,  381 

Voltaire 37° 

Vose,  Daniel. - 43 

Vox  Ste.llarum.. 17 


W 


-371 


.  K.,  letter  from 

Wales. - - 184 

Walpole,  Robert 45 

Wardell - 17° 

Warming  pans  - ---   1/4 

War  notes -.294 

Warren,  Gen.  Joseph 43 

Warren's  Chambers. 31 

Warsaw 3°8 

War  verses.   - 291 

Washington 269,  270,  339,  438 

Waterloo- - ---  n 

Watts.  Dr 61,  247 

Weather  Judgment 179 

Webb 271 

Webster - 45° 

Webster's  Dictionary 214 

Weekly  News  Letter ...So,  121 

Wendell,  Capt. 47* 

Wentworth,   Benning.._ 267 

Wereburga 466 

West,  (Benjamin) 34 

Western  Post 263 

Western  Reserve  Historical  Society 135 

West  Indies 329 

Westminster  (England) 37 

Whatever  is,  is  right 410 

Wheelock -.170 

Whiston,  Rev.  Mr... 164 

Whitefield,  Rev.  George 142 

White  (Peregrine) 185 

Whitfield... 170 

Whiting.  Mrs 35 


Whooping  Cough,  Recipe  for 479 

Wiggen 184 

Wigglesworth,  Michael 108 

Wild  Geese 96 

William,  Duke  of  Cumberland 200,  307 

William  Henry  Ft 307,  340 

William,  King 195 

William  (III) ...   17 

Williams 264,  269 

Williamsburg 268 

Windy  Weather 449 

Wine  making 448 

Winslow 262,  266,  269,  271,  272 

Winthrop,  Govr 47 

Win  throp.  John 33 

Witchcraft ...198 

Wives  and  Mistresses. 403 

Wolfe,  General 308,  309,  310,  311,  313,  341 

Woodward,  Dick... 35 

Woodward,  Mrs 41 

Woodward,  Richard.. 29,  35,  36,  43 

•Wood  ward '  s  Tavern 4*  >  43 

World,  beginning  of.. 131 

World,  destruction  of 213 

Worm  Seed 107 

Worthington,   Erastus 12 

Worthington   (historian)... 24 


X 


antippe 458 


I  ale  College -.. 343 

Yorkshire 288 

Young  ._ 363 

Z/ainer,  John 16 

Zealand 131 

Zodiac,   signs  of,  poem ...216 

Zomdorff. 341 


Mend,  (Gentle  Reader}  what  escapes  amiss, 
And  then  it  matters  not  whose  Fault  it  is  ; 
For,  all  men  sin,  since  Adam  first  Trans  grest  : 
The  Printer  sins  ;  I  sin  much  like  the  rest  : 

Yet  here  our  Comfort  is,  though  both  Offend, 
We  to  our  Faults  can  quickly  put  — 


AN 


1  Capt.  George  Wharton,  "  Student  in  Astronomy,"  author  of  "  HEM- 
EROSCOPEION,"  1652. 


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